Ayri Zaminآیری زمین
Location: Ayri Zamin is a graveyard near the village of Sheykhlar in the Mughan Steppe, northwestern Iran, Ardabil Province
38°58’38.0″N 48°16’58.4″E
Map
Historical Period
Parthian
History and description
Ayri Zamin or Tepe Nokhod is a mound (100 x 100 m) located in the proximity of the village of Sheykhlar on the west bank of the Balha Rud. The mound, essentially a graveyard site now on private property, was the object of clandestine excavations as early as the 1960s. The controlled archaeological excavations at Ayri Zamin revealed the existence of a graveyard of the Parthian period. Eight pithoi burials were found in excavations. The big terracotta pithoi contained the skeletal remains of one or two individuals (figs. 1 and 2). Grave goods consist of plain pottery vessels and a few personal ornaments such as pins or necklaces.
Fig. 1. A pithos burial at Ayri Zamin (after Kambakhsh Fard, Parthian Pithos-Burials at Germi (Azarbaijan), p. 28, pls. 15-17)
Fig. 2. Drawing of the pithos burials at Ayri Zamin (after Kambakhsh Fard, Parthian Pithos-Burials at Germi (Azarbaijan), p. 10)
Archaeological Exploration
Seyfollah Kambakhsh Fard excavated a few burials at Ayri Zamin on behalf of the Iranian Department of Archaeology in 1968.
Finds
Big terracotta jars containing skeletal remains, pottery vessels, personal ornaments in bronze.
Bibliography
Kambakhsh Fard, S., Parthian Pithos-Burials at Germi (Azarbaijan), Tehran, 1998, pp. 8-11
