Archaeological Survey of Parthian Sites in Dargaz Plain, North-East of Iran

Dargaz County is located in northeastern Iranian Plateau, near to borders of Turkmenistan. Its location so close to Turkmenistan and ancient Nisa, as the first homeland capital of the Parthians, shows the importance of this area in the Iranian history. Discovery of 85 sites dating to the Parthian period in this plain is a testimony to this importance. In this paper, the distribution of the sites has been discussed considering the impact of environmental elements. Settlements of this area have been measured by the distribution of its surface finds. Taking into account of environmental data and the site size, three clusters of sites have been proposed for the Parthian sites of Dargaz. The sites of Toghi and Shahr Tepe are the central sites of two clusters of A and B, respectively. The cluster C represents those sites that have been distributed on the foothills and on the plain as well. Some of these sites are cemeteries of nomadic sector of the Parthian population of the time.