Studien zur Eisenzeit im zentraliranischen Hochland unter besonderer Berücksichtigung der neuen Ausgrabung von Tepe Sialk (2001-05)

The present study is based on the new research carried out at the southern mound of Sialk (Isfahan Province, Iran) in 2001-2005 as well as on the results of recent excavations at other Iron Age sites located in the centre of the so-called Central Iranian Plateau. On the basis of comparative studies, sites such as Sialk reveal that the settlement patterns in Central Iranian Plateau during the Late Bronze Age and the Iron Age show a strong continuity in occupation, with the evidence supporting the idea that the appearance of Iron Age culture in the Iranian plateau was not overall due to immigration, rather it was the result of internal and original cultural developments.