Between 2021 and 2023, an archaeological expedition, comprising specialists from various fields, conducted a comprehensive study of the Chapparabad site, situated in northwestern Iran.
According to the Progorodsamara.ru web portal, particular focus was placed on examining infant burials interred within ceramic containers. During the excavations, two artifacts were recovered; radiocarbon dating estimated their age to be approximately 6500 years, enabling their association with the Dalma and Pisdeli archaeological cultures.
The fragile nature of skeletal remains often poses preservation challenges; however, in this instance, two remarkably well-preserved interments were unearthed, offering unique scientific insight. Previously, funerary rites associated with child burials in the Dalma and Pisdeli cultures had not been thoroughly investigated; most researchers had concentrated their attention on analyzing pottery and its cultural significance.
Archaeologists undertook a detailed analysis of the skeletal materials, including osteometric measurements, documentation of the skeletons’ positioning within the vessels, and identification of any potential signs of illness. The research findings were subsequently published in the respected academic journal “Archaeological Research in Asia,” which also featured a comparative study against similar burials found in Southwest Asia.
Both embryos were classified as premature, appearing to have reached a developmental stage equivalent to 36–38 weeks of gestation. Their skeletons were deposited in ceramic jars, a practice characteristic of Dalma culture burial traditions. Nevertheless, despite the general similarities, noteworthy discrepancies in the funerary arrangements drew the attention of the researchers, necessitating deeper scrutiny.
The first skeleton was discovered in an anatomically correct posture, with the skull positioned near the vessel’s opening. The container also held sheep bones containing remnants of meat products and other worked bone pieces, suggesting a possible ritualistic offering. This burial lay beneath the floor of a room identified as a kitchen, which might imply a specific social status or ritual customs related to integrating the deceased into the community’s economic life.
The second skeleton was found in a disordered arrangement, lacking any accompanying objects or animal bones, and it was located adjacent to a grain storage structure. These variances in burial practices could indicate different social or ritual contexts for the two interments.
The researchers concluded that the interment within the kitchen, accompanied by meat provisions, may have symbolized a distinct societal standing or a ritual action connected to “nourishing” or incorporating the deceased into the community’s domestic cycle. Burial within the ceramic vessel likely represented a symbolic return to the womb, a common custom across various archaeological cultures.
This analysis provides invaluable information concerning the societal and cultural activities, attitudes towards mortality, and worldviews of the region’s early inhabitants, whose chronology is predominantly established through ceramic sequences. The results furnished make a considerable contribution to understanding the funerary rites and rituals of the Dalma and Pisdeli cultures, as well as their place within the broader archaeological framework of Southwest Asia.
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