Archaeologists working at Iran’s ancient Burnt City (Shahr-e Sūkhté) have uncovered a 4,600-year-old board game along with an engraved bone comb, preserved organic material and previously undocumented burial forms, offering a rare look at everyday and social life in the Bronze Age settlement.
The finds were made during the 21st season of excavations at Shahr-e Sukhteh in southeastern Iran, according to excavation director Rouhollah Shirazi. The campaign began July 20 and includes three excavation areas, with one in the residential quarter and two in the cemetery.
Researchers working in the cemetery recovered the game along with pottery, organic remains and evidence of new burial types. Shirazi said the game dates to the third millennium BC and could provide information about entertainment and social practices at the settlement.
“These discoveries can provide researchers with new information about less-known aspects of the life, culture and social relations of the inhabitants of the Burnt City,” Shirazi said.
Board game find adds new clues at ancient burnt city
The excavation also produced an engraved bone comb that Shirazi said has no known counterpart from the region. Similar examples have been reported at some archaeological sites in Central Asia, although researchers have not said whether the object was locally produced or brought to the settlement.
Organic material recovered during the season includes egg or eggshell remains, textile fragments and leather. Such materials are rarely preserved for thousands of years and could help researchers examine ancient technologies, consumption and daily activities.
The residential excavation has also changed how researchers view part of the settlement. In the northeastern residential area, archaeologists identified two architectural phases along with animal remains, tools, stone-working debris, animal figurines and hearths.
Shirazi said the evidence indicates the area was not used only for industrial activity. Instead, residents appear to have carried out ordinary household activities alongside some forms of craft production.
Scientific testing could refine the findings
The excavation is being supported by a wider scientific program that includes radiocarbon dating, OSL sampling, physical anthropology, ancient DNA sampling, and examination of human remains for signs of disease and trauma. Results from those studies have not yet been announced.
The season drew official attention before the discoveries were widely announced. On Aug. 31, Sistan-Baluchestan Gov. Mansour Bijar visited the excavation and was briefed on its latest findings. Provincial officials said more than 10 billion Iranian rials had supported the current campaign.
Following the visit, Bijar allocated 50 billion rials for continued archaeological work and a planned 22nd excavation season at Shahr-e Sukhteh.
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