Published papers

The Shahrizor Plain, Iraqi Kurdistan, lies between the Mesopotamian lowlands and the Zagros highlands. The location of this plain is significant in discussing the expansion process of the Ubaid black-on-buff ceramics into the Zagros Mountains and the subsequent regionalisation from the Late Ubaid (c. 4900–4500 BCE) to Late Chalcolithic 1 (LC, c. 4500–4200 BCE). However, the number of excavated Ubaid sites in the Shahrizor Plain is still limited compared to the northern part of Iraqi Kurdistan. Even though previous studies found Ubaid layers from excavations in the Shahrizor Plain, the ceramic information during the Late Ubaid is mainly preliminary. This study reports the first assessment of a new Ubaid ceramic assemblage discovered from Shakar Tepe (SSP-24) in the Shahrizor Plain, southern Iraqi Kurdistan, focusing mainly on its ware types and vessel forms. Through detailed ceramic analyses and intersite comparisons, we examine the relative chronology of the Ubaid pottery from Shakar Tepe and discuss the regional interactions and settlement dynamics in the Ubaid period of the Shahrizor Plain.

Abstract: The Shahrizor Plain is one of the ideal fields for tracking the transition from Neolithic village life in the Fertile Crescent to Urbanisation which occurred in Mesopotamia because of its geographical location connecting the mountainside valleys along the Zagros and the downstream Diyala River that flows into the Tigris. Our field project aims to obtain archaeological materials to unveil this process. Following the first excavations at Shakar Tepe conducted in 2019, we excavated two additional areas at this site in 2023, including one of the three satellite mounds that were newly identified around the main mound. The cultural remains of the Late Halaf settlement uncovered from Operation B at Shakar Tepe II date back to approximately 5600–5400 calBC. On the other hand, Operation C at Shakar Tepe I yielded a thick deposit of the Late Chalcolithic occupations dated to ca. 3800–3600 calBC. The recovered materials fill the time ranges in the late prehistoric chronology of the site and will contribute to our understanding of the historical role of this region in the transition from Neolithisation to Urbanisation.

Pottery vessels often comprise major burial goods at archaeological sites, thus providing valuable information for reconstructing past mortuary practices. However, because of the uncertainty of its function or use, which has been interpreted mostly through typological studies alone, the analytical potential of pottery as a burial good has not been fully exploited. This study applied bio-chemical and geochemical analyses for the first time to funerary pottery vessels of the Iron Age of North Iran to examine their function and use. The study materials are from the necropolis of Ghalekuti, Dailaman, excavated in the 1960s. Direct radiocarbon dating conducted on human and animal bones in the graves and typological analysis of the pottery anchored the chronological position of the pottery materials to the 2nd and 1st millennium BC. A petrographic analysis revealed that pottery vessels can be classified into six fabric types, including those with coarse tempers that are effective for cooking. Pottery pastes with finer inclusions less suited for cooking appeared during the early first millennium BC (Iron Age III). To obtain further insight into the function of the pottery, we conducted organic residue analyses. The results demonstrated that the vessels retained remains of botanical and animal origin. In particular, jars with tubular spouts, characteristic of the Iron Age III period, were likely specialised for botanical products. Interestingly, both carcass and dairy products from ruminant animals (cattle and caprine) were processed in short-neck jars and bowls, including spouted bowls, suggesting their use in a liquid state. Products from ruminants, particularly dairy products, may have played a significant role in the daily and ritual use of pottery vessels during the study period in Northern Iran. These results indicate that a range of pottery vessels used for specific purposes before the burial was offered for graves, helping us better understand the mortuary practices of Iron Age Iran.

From the late 7th to the early 6th millennium BCE, when the Neolithic period set out in southern Iran, the cultural periods of Mushki and Jari were defined based on differences in painted decorations. The study of pottery found from both periods is still biased toward chronology, and further research on pottery-making techniques is necessary. Therefore, this paper examines the design arrangement of painted pottery during these periods and discusses the background and diachronic changes in painting rules and pottery-making communities by observing 3D models of well-preserved pottery excavated from Tall-e Mushki and Tall-e Jari B, curated in the University Museum, the University of Tokyo.

紀元前5千年紀、西アジアではウバイド（Ubaid）文化をはじめとして、都市文化の黎明期を踏み出した村落社会が複雑化していく段階にあった。それと同時に西アジア各地では、ウバイド文化を代表する物質文化的特徴である鈍黄色黒彩土器（Black on Buff Ware） が各地へ拡散し、展開していたことが知られている。本稿でははじめに、鈍黄色黒彩土器が拡散した地域の中では西端に位置する地域である、イラン南西部に位置するタル・イ・ギャプ遺跡出土土器（東京大学総合研究博物館所蔵）の中から、未報告資料を中心に報告する。その次に今まで編年に関して問題を抱えており、鈍黄色黒彩土器がどのように受容され展開したかが判然としていないイラン南西部、ファールス地方に焦点を当てて、イラン南西部における鈍黄色黒彩土器の受容と展開過程を論じる。最後に南北メソポタミア、スシアナ地方、ペルシア湾岸地域における鈍黄色黒彩土器の受容と展開過程を概観し、イラン南西部との比較を試み、イラン南西部の鈍黄色黒彩土器の受容と展開にみられる地域的特色を探る。 In 5th Millenium B.C. of West Asia, village societies, such as the Ubaid, were in the stage of social complexity that leaded them to urban societies. At the same time of West Asia, Black on Buff Ware, which is characteristic of the material culture of the Ubaid, expanded everywhere and developed locally. This paper at first reports new results of observations obtained by unreported pottery from Tall-i Gap, Marv Dasht Plain, Southwest Iran, which is located in the west edge of the Black on Buff Ware's horizon. Secondly, this paper discusses the acceptance and development of Black on Buff Ware in Southwest Iran, which is not clear because of chronological problems. Finally, we compare the acceptance and development of Black on Buff Ware in Southwest Iran with those in Southern Mesopotamia, Northern Mesopotamia, Susiana, and Persian Gulf. Then we seek the regional characteristics of Fars, Southwest Iran.

Black on Buff ware, which characterizes the cultural entity "Bakun", was accepted in the beginning of the 5th millennium BC of Fars, southwest Iran, and this phenomenon coincides with the shift from Neolithic to Chalcolithic in this area. Two issues remain unclarified as to this phenomenon. First, the precise timing of the acceptance of the Black on Buff ware is unclear. Secondly, the process of the acceptance of the Black on Buff ware should also be further elucidated. This paper deals with these issues by referring to potsherds from Tall-i Jari A, square C, which is kept in the University Museum, the University of Tokyo. This site, excavated by Namio Egami and Seiichi Masuda, has cultural periods from Late Pottery Neolithic (Jari and Shamsabad) to Chalcolithic (Early Bakun). The square C, which consists of five layers according to the author's stratigraphic analysis, contains a transitional period between the Shamsabad and the Bakun. A quantitative analysis of potsherds from this square shows that Black on Buff ware occupies only 20％ of all wares even in the most upper layer. In addition, the analysis points out that Black on Buff potsherds in the lower layers differ from those in the upper layers (Early Bakun) in terms of decoration and form. This paper will discuss the timing and the process of the introduction of Black on Buff ware in Fars by using these results. It also addresses a new radiocarbon date from Tall-i Jari A, Square C.