Excavations at Hotu Cave and Significance of its Iron Age Pottery

Subject Areas : Prehistoric Archaeology

Amir Sadegh Naghshineh ^{1 *}

1 - Assistant Professor, Department of Archaeology, Islamic Azad University, Abhar Branch, Abhar, Iran.

Received: 2023-08-01 Accepted : 2023-08-01 Published : 2005-08-23

Keywords: Iron age, Hotu Cave, Iron Age Pottery, North East Iran,

Abstract :

In the excavations which were taken place in "Hotu cave", near Behshahr, more than fifty years age, in addition to findings of Stone Age, remains of more recently eras and particularly Iron Age were obtained. But since this cave was searched aiming to study Stone Age and to attain to the remains of this era, not much attention was paid to the findings of Iron Age and these materials were recorded in the national museum of Iran. This situation is prevailed whereas our information about Iron Age in North East Iran is very restricted and every kind of data in this field can be very valuable.  This article discusses about the quality of recognition and excavation of Hotu cave and its stratigraphy and Chronology with attention to Iron Age layers and emphasize on the necessity of study, classification and introduction of Iron Age pottery in this cave.