Compositional Analysis of the Pottery Shards of Shahr-I Sokhta, South Eastern Iran

A compositional analysis of pottery shards from Shahr-i Sokhta, one of the oldest settlements in southeastern Iran, reveals that most shards are locally made. Using X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) to analyze major and trace elements, researchers found that the majority of buff, gray, and red shards share similar chemical signatures, indicating local production. However, a subset of samples (18259-9, 18265-10, 18266-13, 18271-15, and 18273-4) exhibited distinct compositions, suggesting they were imported. This study sheds light on the site's economic and social dynamics during its occupation from approximately 5000 years ago to 1800 BC.

Moradi, H., Dadian, H. S., Ramli, Z., & Nik Abdul Rahman, N. H. S. (2013). Compositional Analysis of the Pottery Shards of Shahr-I Sokhta, South Eastern Iran. Research Journal of Applied Sciences, Engineering and Technology, 6(4), 654–659. https://doi.org/10.19026/rjaset.6.4177