Project Details
The unexplored heartland: institutional landscapes and networks in eastern Fārs Phase 2: Operating the institutional landscape: Nīrīz
Applicants
Professor Dr. Wouter Henkelman; Dr. Kai Kaniuth
Subject Area
Egyptology and Ancient Near Eastern Studies
Ancient History
Ancient History
Term
since 2019
Project identifier
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 424380776
Building on the results of the first project phase, the second funding phase - applied for here - will examine the functioning of early historical institutional landscapes within the Niriz region, Fars Province, Iran. Based on the extremely rich cuneiform tradition (above all from the Persepolis Fortification Archive), a network analysis of the relative administrative structure of this part of the empire will be undertaken. At the same time, the past settlement structure will be documented archaeologically. Both models will then be collated into a high-resolution synthesis of local imperial structuring principles, with the aid of advanced archaeometric methods (e.g. chemical determination of the origin of clay tablets), among others. In the diachronic analysis, the significance of centrally administered institutional landscapes for the development of social resilience will be investigated.
DFG Programme
Priority Programmes