Zagros Mousterian

"Papers from the session Iran Palaeolithic presented at the XV UISPP World Congress, September 2006.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction
Marcel Otte, Fereidoun Biglari, Jacques Jaubert

The Middle Palaeolithic occupation of Mar-Tarik, a new Zagros Mousterian site in Bisotun massif (Kermanshah, Iran)
J. Jaubert, F. Biglari, V. Mourre, L. Bruxelles, J.-G. Bordes, S. Shidrang, R. Naderi,M. Mashkour, B. Maureille, J.-B. Mallye, Y. Quinif, W. Rendu & V. Laroulandie

Test Excavations at the Middle Paleolithic Sites of Qaleh Bozi, Southwest of Central Iran. A Preliminary Report
Fereidoun Biglari, Mohsen Javeri, Marjan Mashkour, Mehdi Yazdi, Sonia Shidrang, Margareta Tengberg, Kamal Taheri, Jamshid Darvish,

Whither the Aurignacian in the Middle East? Assessing the Zagros Upper Paleolithic
Deborah I. Olszewski

A Typo-technological Study of an Upper Paleolithic Collection from Sefid-Ab, Central Iran
Sonia Shidrang

Origines du Paléolithique supérieur en Asie occidentale
Marcel Otte, Janusz K. Kozłowski

The Upper Paleolithic faunal remains from Yafteh cave (central Zagros), 2005 campaign. A preliminary study

Marjane Mashkour, Valentin Radu, Azadeh Mohaseb, Narges ashemi,Marcel Otte, Sonia Shidrang

La séquence baradostienne de Yafteh (Khorramabad, Lorestan, Iran)
Jean-Guillaume Bordes, Sonia Shidrang

Late Pleistocene Prehistory in Central Alborz: Preliminary Results of the French and Iranian Palaeoanthropological Programme 2006 on the excavation of Garm Roud 2 (Amol,Mazandaran)
Gilles Berillon, Asghar Asgari Khaneghah, Benoît Chevrier, Patrick Auguste,Valéry Zeitoun, Muhammad Beheshti, Sara Nochadi,Hamid Ebadollahi Chanzanagh, Fernando Ramirez Rozzi, Jean-Jacques Bahain, Pierre Antoine, Carole Vercoutère

Iranian Paleolithic sites on Travertine and Tufa Formations
Saman Heydari-Guran, Elham Ghasidian, Nicholas J. Conard

Late Palaeolithic cultural traditions in the Basht region
of the Southwestern Zagros of Iran
Elham Ghasidian, Ahmad Azadi, Saman Heydari-Guran, Nicholas J. Conard

The Open-air Late Paleolithic site of Bardia and the Paleolithic Occupation of the Qaleh Gusheh Sand Dunes, Esfahan Province, Iran
Nicholas J. Conard, Elham Ghasidian, Saman Heydari-Guran

Conclusion
Marcel Otte, Fereidoun Biglari, Jacques Jaubert"

Since 2012, the French archaeological mission in the Governorate of Soulaimaniah has been exploring the Rania and Peshdar plains in order to understand the evolution of settlement patterns in Northern Mesopotamia from the Palaeolithic to the present day. Newly acquired data from surveys combined with excavations at six prehistoric sites provide the first picture of human settlement patterns in this region from the Palaeolithic to the Chalcolithic. The development of these patterns reveals the presence of a local system that was deeply rooted in the wider Mesopotamian context but was also subject to influence from the Iranian plateau.

The last two decades have seen a significant development in the field of rescue archaeology in Iran due to the increasing legal protection of archaeological sites in areas that are threatened by rapid urban and rural development. The construction of numerous dams, used for irrigation, hydropower, and other purposes in different parts of the country forced the Iranian Center for Archaeological Research (ICAR) to take action and organize rescue projects. Except for a few projects in the Khuzestan and Fars regions (Wright 1979; Tsuneki and Zeidi 2008), these rescue projects have been focused mainly on excavation of mound sites, which is not surprising given that they are the most common site type in the alluvial plains of Iran. As a result, archaeological salvage projects have predominantly contributed information on late prehistoric and historic periods. The construction of Darian Dam on the Sirwan River in the Central Western Zagros, where archaeological deposits are better preserved in cave and rockshelter contexts, have allowed us to explore such sheltered sites in the framework of a dam salvage project.

Since 2012, the French archaeological mission in the Governorate of Soulaimaniah has been exploring the Rania and Peshdar plains in order to understand the evolution of settlement patterns in Northern Mesopotamia from the Palaeolithic to the present day. Newly acquired data from surveys combined with excavations at six prehistoric sites provide the first picture of human settlement patterns in this region from the Palaeolithic to the Chalcolithic. The development of these patterns reveals the presence of a local system that was deeply rooted in the wider Mesopotamian context but was also subject to influence from the Iranian plateau.

The earliest evidence for prehistoric occupation of the Iranian Plateau dates to the Paleolithic period. Stone tools and animal remains provide the bulk of the evidence for this period which start from the first appearance of human in Western Asia about 1.8 million years ago, to the end of the last Ice Age, approximately 12 thousand years ago. This period saw extreme cooling and recurrent glaciations (Ice Ages) that greatly affected early human communities who were highly dependent on available natural resources.
Iran with wide range of geographic variation and resources could support Paleolithic hunter-gatherer bands who were moving from place to place frequently to exploit resources as they become available in different areas. Archaeological remains of these early foragers have been found in a variety of places throughout the country including caves, rockshelters and open- air sites. Most of the known caves and shelters are situated in the Zagros, particularly in its western part, that are mainly developed in limestone. Archaeological excavation in these caves and shelters provide information about past human activities who used caves as temporary camps and left behind remains of their food, fireplace, remains of their stone tool manufacture and other daily activities remains.