The Lower Paleolithic Occupation of Iran

Abstract

Bounded in the north and south by the Caspian Sea and Persian Gulf respectively, Iran is a natural bridge connecting southwestern Asia to southern and central Asia and therefore could have been a main route for hominin expansion eastwards. Despite its strategic location, however, it has produced little evidence for early hominin occupation. This evidence generally comprises stone artifacts with no clear stratigraphic contexts and no associated faunal remains. Therefore, compared to the Levant, the Caucasus or the Indian subcontinent, it has been one of the least-known regions of Southwest Asia. Here we present a preliminary synthesis—using information from surveys conducted by western researchers during the late 1950s through the 1970s, data from recent field surveys, re-analyses of old collections by Iranian researchers, and research undertaken by joint Iranian and foreign teams during the last decade—that yields new data about the Lower Paleolithic occupation of Iran and its probable relations with neighboring regions