Konar Sandal
Encyclopedia
Konar Sandal is a Bronze Age
archaeological site, situated just south of Jiroft
, Kermān Province, Iran
.
It consists of two mounds a few kilometers apart, called Konar Sandal A and B with a height of 13 and 21 meters, respectively. At Konar Sandal B, a two-story, windowed citadel with a base of close to 13.5 hectares was found.
The site is associated with the hypothesized "Jiroft culture", a 3rd millennium BC culture postulated on the basis of a collection of artifacts confiscated in 2001.
The proposition of identifying the site as an "independent Bronze Age civilization
with its own architecture and language" is due to Yousef Majidzadeh, head of the archaeological excavation team in Jiroft since. Majidzadeh speculates they may be the remains of the lost Aratta
Kingdom. Other conjectures (e.g. Daniel T. Potts, Piotr Steinkeller) have connected the site with the obscure city-state of Marhashi. Majidzadeh's conclusions have met with skepticism from reviewers.
Muscarella (2004) notes that as of August 2004, no excavated artifacts have been reported from Madjidzadeh's excavation that relate or can be compared to the dissimilar, unexcavated objects confiscated in 2001 and published by Majidzadeh in his 2003 Catalogue.
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
archaeological site, situated just south of Jiroft
Jiroft
Jiroft is a city in and the capital of Jiroft County, Kerman Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 95,031, in 19,926 families. It is located south of the city of Kerman, and south of Tehran along Road 91...
, Kermān Province, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
.
It consists of two mounds a few kilometers apart, called Konar Sandal A and B with a height of 13 and 21 meters, respectively. At Konar Sandal B, a two-story, windowed citadel with a base of close to 13.5 hectares was found.
The site is associated with the hypothesized "Jiroft culture", a 3rd millennium BC culture postulated on the basis of a collection of artifacts confiscated in 2001.
The proposition of identifying the site as an "independent Bronze Age civilization
Civilization
Civilization is a sometimes controversial term that has been used in several related ways. Primarily, the term has been used to refer to the material and instrumental side of human cultures that are complex in terms of technology, science, and division of labor. Such civilizations are generally...
with its own architecture and language" is due to Yousef Majidzadeh, head of the archaeological excavation team in Jiroft since. Majidzadeh speculates they may be the remains of the lost Aratta
Aratta
Aratta is a land that appears in Sumerian myths surrounding Enmerkar and Lugalbanda, two early and possibly mythical kings of Uruk also mentioned on the Sumerian king list.-Role in Sumerian literature:Aratta is described as follows in Sumerian literature:...
Kingdom. Other conjectures (e.g. Daniel T. Potts, Piotr Steinkeller) have connected the site with the obscure city-state of Marhashi. Majidzadeh's conclusions have met with skepticism from reviewers.
Muscarella (2004) notes that as of August 2004, no excavated artifacts have been reported from Madjidzadeh's excavation that relate or can be compared to the dissimilar, unexcavated objects confiscated in 2001 and published by Majidzadeh in his 2003 Catalogue.
See also
- Shahr-i SokhtaShahr-i SokhtaShahr-e Sūkhté , also spelled as Shahr-e Sukhteh and Shahr-i Shōkhta, is an archaeological site of a sizable Bronze Age urban settlement, associated with the Jiroft culture. It is located in Sistan and Baluchistan Province, the southeastern part of Iran, on the bank of the Helmand River, near the...
- Halil RiverHalil RiverHalīl River is a river stretching for some 390 km running in the Jiroft and Kahnuj districts of Kerman Province, Iran. It rises at 3,300 m, in the Hazar mountains about 100 km to the north-west of Jiroft, flowing to the south-west until it is joined by the Rudar and Rabar rivers...
- ArattaArattaAratta is a land that appears in Sumerian myths surrounding Enmerkar and Lugalbanda, two early and possibly mythical kings of Uruk also mentioned on the Sumerian king list.-Role in Sumerian literature:Aratta is described as follows in Sumerian literature:...
- MarhasiMarhasiMarhaši was a 3rd millennium BC polity situated east of Elam, on the Iranian plateau. It is known from Mesopotamian sources, and its precise location has not been identified...
- Cities of the Ancient Near EastCities of the ancient Near EastThe largest cities in the Bronze Age ancient Near East housed several tens of thousands. Memphis in the Early Bronze Age with some 30,000 inhabitants was the largest city of the time by far...