Cultural Interactions between the Sistan Basin and the Bampur Valley: Grey Wares Characterization in Question During the 3rd Millennium BCE

During the third Millennium BCE, grey wares were the most popular wares in the Indo-Iranian borderlands in which the Bampur Valley and the Sistan basin played a significant role. This research aims to compare grey wares of the above-mentioned regions in order to have a better understanding of possible cultural similarities in both regions. Similarities between grey wares of the regions at the issue have been frequently explained in the light of the long-distance trade mechanism, and considered as a result of the (intentional or unintentional) exchange of pottery techniques and design styles through commercial activities. Eighteen Grey ceramic sherds were sampled at Tepe Bampur and Shahr-i Sokhta, two key-sites, which are respectively located in the Bampur Valley and the Sistan Basin. To compare the raw materials of the ceramic samples after their analyses, some clay samples were also collected from two specific natural clay deposits, located 10 km north and 45 km south of Shahr-i Sokhta, and from the bank and riverbed of the Bampur River. In addition, a clay sample was also collected from a clay deposit in the Pirgel region, located 100 km north of Tepe Bampur and 300 km southwest of Shahr-i Sokhta. By means of XRF techniques, it was attempted to compare different elements of the ceramic and soil samples. The results show that there are close similarities between the chemical elements of the grey wares collected at Shahr-i Sokhta and Tepe Bampur and soil samples from the Bampur Valley and the Pirgel region. Although these similarities are not seen with soil samples of the Sistan Basin, the grey wares of these two sites were completely similar. Finally, it can be stated that the fine grey wares of the Sistan Basin were not locally manufactured but were probably imported from the Bampur Valley and other regions through long-distance trade during the third millennium BCE.