Achaemenid Settlement in Shiraz Plain: Tol-e Sefid Sadra

Abstract

Shiraz plain is one of the most important plains adjacent to Persepolis. Tirazziš place have been mentioned in the Persepolis Archives many times. For further research on the place name of modern Shiraz with what is mentioned in the Achaemenid’s Archives, it was necessary to carried out an archeological survey in this plain. Objective and methodical archeological researches had not been carried out in the Shiraz plain until 2008. In the process of this new methodical archaeological survey, one of the most important ancient sites of the Achaemenid and Post-Achaemenid periods was identified in the Shiraz plain. According to the ceramic documents, this site was inhabited in the Achaemenid and Post-Achaemenid periods. Shiraz is mentioned in the Persepolis Archives under the Elamite form Tirazziš. This site attests to the situation of the Shiraz plain in the Achaemenid and Post-Achaemenid periods. The introduction of this ancient site provides a new perspective to understand the relationship between the Shiraz plain in the Achaemenid period and its connection with Persepolis.