An Emergency Archaeological Excavation Project on Babak Street (at the Corner of Zahmatkesh Alley) of Shahr-e Rey: Preliminary Report on Architectural Findings and Archaeological Evidence

A site located on Babak Street (at the corner of Zahmatkesh alley) of Shahr-e Rey was reveled in January 2018 due to constructional excavation in Rabaz section of city of Rey. The present paper investigates and studies the findings of Malek site on Babak Street (at the corner of Zahmatkesh alley) in Shahr-e Rey and compares this site with other contemporary sites and finally clarifies some ambiguities in this area. According to its geographical location, this site is situated in Rabaz area of Shahr-e Rey and has architecturally been developed. The architectural findings of this area indicate the important features of urban planning and residential architecture such as the use of bricks as the main element of building materials, the use of decorative arches, advanced systems and water supply mechanisms related to architecture (water passages and waterways, water storage ponds, bathes and toilets, sanitary facilities and etc.), industrial and workshop spaces and the existence of a surface rock-cut architecture. In pottery art, this site is also highly diverse in terms of motifs and techniques. The pottery findings include non-glazed, mono-color glazed, splash-glazed, Sgraffito, golden ceramics, etc. The results of the archeological excavations in this area showed that two cultural periods have been settled in this region; in the first period of settlement during the Seljuq era, as a result of being located in Rabaz area of the city, it contains advanced architectural evidence and significant pottery data. In the second period, which is related to the Ilkhanid era, the architecture is related to a temporary settlement and there is no stable and in architectural evidence.

Ray has always been considered as one of the most important cities of the Islamic era and also the archeological excavations and surveys indicate the existence of ancient and historical layers in the heart of this ancient city. In general, during the recent years and due to numerous constructional excavations and diggings conducted in the ancient urban area of Rey, abundant evidence which indicates the existence of ancient and historical layers has been obtained. Numerous factors such as geographical location, cultural, economic status, religion and social conditions could have caused the gathering of human groups in a space with defined boundaries. Meanwhile, due to the importance of its political, economic, cultural and social status, Ray has always been considered in different eras. This matter has affected the urbanism and especially the residential architecture of this city. The site of Babak Street (on the corner of Zahmatkesh Alley), as a perfect example of residential architecture of Ray in the Seljuq and Ilkhanid periods, represents a number of special architectural features and elements. The greatest and most important collection of findings from Malek site located at Babak Street in Rey consists the ceramics which are regarded as the first-hand documents for dating and chronology of the site and are also very important data for analyzing the urban status and social structure of Rey in this geographical location. During an emergency excavation season in the intended site, more than 2000 potsherds were obtained. About 1800 pieces of the pottery discovered belong to the Islamic era. In terms of technical and decorative features, this pottery is divided into two separate categories of non-glazed and glazed pottery.

Cities, both in terms of history and antiquity, and in terms of modern and contemporary dimensions, serve as a suitable research field for archaeological and historiographical studies. According to the geographical location of the intended excavation, this site is located in the historical context of the current city of Rey and given the architectural evidence and pottery findings, it shows the progress and development of this part of the city in its time period. The results of this excavation reveal two periods of settlement in this site; In the first period, the people of the Seljuq era settled in this area and in terms of residential architecture, notable progress and urban expansion was achieved. This section, representing the residential architecture and urban planning of Rabaz section of Rey in the Seljuq period, suggests the importance of this site. In terms of architecture, we see that the previous features is developed and expected, and new formation features are observed in the architecture of this area. Architectural findings of this site exhibit the important features of urban planning and residential architecture such as the use of bricks as the main element of building materials, the use of decorative arches, advanced architecture-related water supply systems and mechanisms (waterways and water passages, water storage ponds, baths and washing areas, toilets and etc.), industrial and workshop spaces and the existence of a hand-carved architecture. According to the writings of historians and geographers, the first period of settlement in this region was destroyed and abandoned as a result of an earthquake in 571 A.H and ended afterwards. In the second period of settlement, the people of the Ilkhanid era used the architectural remains of the previous period (Seljuq), which was destroyed by an earthquake, in such a way that the flooring in this period has been formed with broken brick pieces of the previous period. In general, most of the buildings of this period were temporarily built with broken materials of the previous period. During this period, no surviving and stable architectural evidence was obtained and it mostly indicates a nomadic settlement. The Ilkhanid lifestyle is classified according to two governmental and temporary approaches, and this reveals the settlement practice and the use of the second architectural period of this region to refer to the Ilkhanid period to some extent. One of the most important findings of this research is the pottery. These materials indicate a great variety of the motifs and techniques. In terms of typology, the pottery data exhibit the different types of non-glazed pottery with engraved, added and stamped decorations, and the various types of glazed pottery, including monochromatic glazed pottery, splash glazed pottery, Sgraffito and Luster wares. According to the comparison and analysis of the pottery, a timeframe extending from the fifth to eighth centuries A.H can be dated for the pottery finds.