Analysis and Assessment of Environmental Factors in Order to Explain the Establishment Patterns of the Iron Age in the Sarakhs Plain

So far, the settlements of the Iron Age of Sarakhs plain have not been studied archaeologically, and on the other hand, the Iron Age of Plain Sarakhs represents the Yaz culture in the region and owes its name to the Yaz Hill area in southwestern Turkmenistan. Studies of the Iron Age culture of the Sarakhs Plain can reveal the basic information of this period and help to understand the general Iron Age of the Iranian plateau and the land of Turkmenistan. The purpose of this study, while identifying Iron Age settlements, is to analyze environmental factors to explain the patterns of Iron Age settlements in the Sarakhs plain. For this purpose, a field study was conducted in the plain and by studying the collected works and library studies. It was found that 16 sites have Iron Age artifacts. Some settlements are single-period and some have chronological sequences. The necessity of the present study is the unknown culture of the Iron Age of Sarakhs plain. Therefore, the identified Iron Age settlements of Sarakhs plain were analyzed from the perspective of environmental factors and their role in explaining settlement patterns. The output of maps and data of Iron Age settlements in Sarakhs plain showed that among the environmental factors influencing the determination of settlement patterns, Distance and proximity in the range of 300 to 900 meters above sea level, Location of settlements along the rivers of Sarakhs plain (linear settlement pattern) and large urban or rural centers (Mir Ahmad and Bazangan) up to 65 hectares (central location), Communication routes (communication route of Greater Khorasan in the Iron Age), In the formation and distribution of settlements have been more influential than other environmental factors. One of the most important results of the present archaeological study, Identifying the Iron Age settlements represents the culture of Yazd Plain Sarakhs, which will be used to measure the distribution of Iron Age settlements in this area to draw a very accurate and comprehensive perspective for understanding the social life of the people of that period.