Research on Prehistoric and Historic Settlement of Qalehganj (Chāhdādkhodā area)‎

Chāhdādkhodā is located at the southernmost of Kerman province; on the border with ‎provinces ‎of Sistan & Baluchistan and Hormozgan.‎ In the administrative divisions of Iran, This area is one of dual districts of Qalehganj towns. ‎In 2016, the first archaeological survey season of Qalehganj was carried out for completing ‎the ‎archaeological map of Iran and identifying the cultural sequence in this area.‎  In present paper, it's tried to determine the regional and trans- regional interactions of study ‎area ‎with its adjacent regions by analyzing and integrating the results of survey.‎  Based on the carried survey, 66 sites and traces were identified that chronologically ‎belonging to ‎periods of Paleolithic (2 cases), fifth millennium bc (2 cases), fourth millennium ‎bc (10 cases), ‎third millennium bc (27 cases), Historic periods(29 sites) and Islamic era (3 cases) ‎and Recent ‎century(2 cases.).‎ Morphologically and functionally, the Ancient sites can be divided to 8 types: 1-Wide multi-‎‎ ‎functional sites 2- Historical Crain burials 3- Ancient tepes 4- Metallurgy sites 5- religion ‎buildings ‎‎6- fortresses 7- Rock engravings 8- Ancient sites with small cultural domination.‎  Based on geographical location, all of above sites situated on two areas as highland zone ‎and ‎plain.‎   Finally, by analyzing of preliminary results of present study area and its adjacent area at ‎northern ‎highlands of Persian gulf, Baluchistan (Bampur) ,Halilroud basin (Jiroft) and Soghan valley) we can consider the study area as a intermediation for connection of mentioned areas in prehistoric and historical periods.‎ Qal’eh Ganj is located on the mostsouthern place of Kerman province. Chāh-e Khodādād is one of two districts of the present Qal’eh Ganj County, on the border of Sistan & Balouchestan and Hormozgan (Figure 1). In 2016, the first season of archaeological survey and reconnaissance of town of Qal’eh Ganj has been carried out as a part of the Iranian National Archaeological Map Project in which the authors tried to clarify the cultural status of the region in different periods in Chāh-e Khodādād District (Mortezayi & Anjomrouz, 2017). In addition to the purposes as mentioned above, the present research attempts to analyze and compound the results of this research and to discern regional and trans-regional connections and interactions with the neighboring areas. This region has a strategic situation because it lies at the trijunction of three significant culturalgeographical zones in the southeast of Iran (Mokrān shores, the Persian Gulf shores and Halīlrūd Rūd (Halīl River) basin (Figure 1). This survey resulted in the discovery of 66 archaeological localities dating from Palaeolithic to Islamic periods. The sites as mentioned earlier which are morphologically influenced by the geographical factors of their places can be categorized into two different types: plain areas and highlands (foothill and mountainous areas). The first season of archaeological survey and reconnaissance of town of Qal’eh Ganj has been carried out as a part of the Iranian National Archaeological Map Project in which the authors tried to clarify the cultural status of the region in different periods in Chāh-e Khodādād District (Mortezayi & Anjomrouz, 2017). The present research attempts to analyse and compound the results of this project and discern regional and trans-regional connections and interactions of this area with the neighbouring areas.  Throughout historic and prehistoric period, how is assess the cultural connection of survey area with surrounded regions? Based on geographical location of study area and archaeological document from surrounded area, we can assume survey area as an intermediation for cultural connection between Halilroud basins, Baluchistan and northen beach of Persian Gulf. Based on the survey, 66 sites and properties have been identified and registered which belong to the Paleolithic (Figure 7 & 8; Table 1), 5th millennium BC (Figure 9; Table 1), 4th millennium BC (Figure 10 & 11; Table 1), 3rd millennium BC (Figure 12 & 13; Table 1), Historical period (Figure 15 & 16; Table 1), the Islamic period (Table 1) and the recent century (Table 1). Considering the morphology and forms of the settlements, all of the recollected sites have been divided into eight types of sites including large compound sites, historical cemeteries, ancient tepes (mounds), archaeometallurgical sites, religious buildings, fortresses, petroglyphs and ancient sites with a few numbers of cultural materials. The sites as mentioned earlier which are morphologically influenced by the geographical factors of their places can be categorized into two different types: plain areas and foothill and mountainous areas. This survey which begins with an investigation on some cases dating back to the middle Paleolithic is in line with other similar researches, but it is the starting point of a series of studies in the area in question as well as in the southeast of Iran. The preliminary findings prove, at least, the noticeable potentials of the area under study for further Paleolithic researches. New finds of Paleolithic period from survey area provide a base to develop Paleolithic research in southeastern Iran especially for asses this area in dispersal of human at southern corridor of Iran (Vahdati nasab et al, 2012). Typology and dating of prehistoric sites (Table 2-4) along with their quantity an  dispersion of cultural materials indicates  potentiality  of survey area for appearance and development of third millennium bc occupations and probably  cities of this period on the margin of episodic rivers. Vicinity and interference of third millennium sites with chalcolithic occupations suggest fifth and forth millennium cultures for searching origins of Bronze Age occupations formation in same regain. The analysis of the preliminary findings as well as other few investigations in the neighboring regions in the northern heights of the Persian Gulf (Podat, 2010) including the vast sites of the Bronze Age in the seasonal riversides of the sites under study, these findings can function as a bridge between basin of Jazmurian and the northern shores of the Persian Gulf. Presence of special pottery of historical period, namord and londo in study area (Figures 15 & 16; Table 5), implies on intermediating role of southern Jazmurian between areas from Baluchistan to southern shores of Persian Gulf in Arabian Peninsula.