Archaeology of South Iran

Lusterware ceramics and tiles were essentially produced in some focal centers of the ancient world such as Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Iran. In Iran, there only exists evidence of their widespread production mostly in Kashan and Ray. However, the limited production of this ware in Gorgan, Takht-e-Soleiman, and Jiroft was also reported. Forty-four pieces of luster tiles from the Qal'eh Dokhtar disposal project in Kerman were discovered and considered in this study. The goal of the research focuses on the chemical characterization and structural features of this unique ware from Qal'eh Dokhtar. Moreover, it is of further interest to know about their possible center of production as well as about the know-how on polychromic constituents. Based on the characteristics of the luster and motifs, eleven tile fragments have been chosen for analysis. Chemical mineralogical compositions of the crystalline phase composition of the paste and glaze as phase-interphase structural charactbeamer studied via SEM-EDX in microscopic scales, XRD, and micro-PIXE. The results indicated that there are typical chemical distributions within the glaze and body of the samples from Qal’eh Dokhtar. A high amount of magnesium and calcium in the samples of Qal’eh Dokhtar can be considered as a geochemical fingerprint of these materials. Mineralogical chemical characterizations suggest that the common elements in the luster tiles of Qal’eh Dokhtar are dissimilar to the other areas. Therefore, it seems that the raw materials of the luster tiles of Qal’eh Dokhtar have been provided from someplace else in the Kerman periphery. Probably, the craftsmen of Jiroft immigrated to Kerman after declining of Jiroft due to the political and social events during the 1203–1299 CE.