Probable evidence of a Middle Palaeolithic site in the northern parts of the Susiana Plain, Khuzestan, Iran

Abstract

There is a considerable body of studies regarding the activities of the Pleistocene human population in the Zagros and Alborz regions of Iran, as well as significant progress in the Palaeolithic studies in other regions, such as the foothills, plains and deserts’ margins. However, some of these peripheral regions and foothills are still neglected, and the information about the Palaeolithic period in these areas is limited. Khuzestan province, especially its northern regions, is one of these unstudied regions, yet the limited information about this region seems very interesting. Khervali, located on the western foothills of the Zagros Mountains and on the northern heights of Susa, nearby the western bank of the Karkheh River, is one of the few Palaeolithic sites identified in recent years. The site was identified in 2012 and was systemically surveyed. Due to the extension of the site and the distribution of the artefacts, sampling all the site was not feasible, therefore, four sections of the site were chosen for taking the samples and a total of 330 stone artefacts were collected. The results of the techno-typology analyses, as well as the frequency of the flakes, the Levallois samples and different types of scrapers, revealed that the artefacts date to the middle Palaeolithic period, with considerable access to the local raw materials.