TEHRAN – Archaeologists have discovered the remains of an ancient metal-smelting site in the forested highlands of Sowme’eh Sara in northern Iran, a find that could shed new light on the history of metallurgy in the western Alborz Mountains.

The remains were identified during field surveys at an elevation of approximately 420 meters above sea level, in an area covered by dense vegetation in the Hyrcanian forests. The site contains furnace clinkers and metallurgical slag spread across an area with an estimated radius of 100 meters.

The site’s location along a ridge near the peaks of the western Alborz Mountains had helped protect the remains from illegal excavations and treasure hunters, according to Majid Kouhi, an archaeologist with the Gilan provincial office of the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts.

“The initial surface evidence and the type of ores found strongly support the possibility of iron-smelting activities,” Kouhi said.

He added that the discovery could establish a link between historical mining areas, including the Shadadi mines, and Iron Age and early first-millennium BC cemeteries nearby.

According to the archaeologist, the discovery has also raised a new hypothesis about the region’s role in ancient metal production. Given the elaborate and finely crafted metal objects unearthed in nearby areas, the site may have served as a major center for smelting and producing raw materials, or possibly as a hub for supplying metals to workshops that manufactured weapons and equipment for warriors in parts of the Iranian plateau.

Kouhi stressed, however, that this hypothesis requires metallurgical testing of materials from the site and neighboring regions.

The findings point to a potentially important role for the western Alborz and Talesh mountain ranges in the supply chain of metals during different historical periods. Further archaeological investigations could help clarify the scale and nature of these activities.

Kouhi said more detailed surveys, test excavations and extensive scientific archaeological work would be necessary to confirm or reject the hypotheses and establish the area’s actual role in the economy and ancient industry of Iran.

Sowme’eh Sara is located on the southern coast of the Caspian Sea, about 25 kilometers west of Rasht, the capital of Gilan province. The Hyrcanian forests form a lush zone of lowland and mountain forests covering approximately 55,000 square kilometers along the Caspian shores of Iran and Azerbaijan.

AM