Typology and Classification of Swords in Khorasan Grand (Khurāsān-i Buzurg) Museum

تاریخ و فرهنگ

Article 2, Volume 56, Issue 2 - Serial Number 113, February 2025, Pages 31-53   

Document Type: Research Article

DOI: 10.22067/jhistory.2024.88483.1311

Authors

Hasan Nami^{* 1}; Farzane Forouzan Nia²; Seyed Ebrahim Rayegani³; Mohammad Sadegh Davari⁴

¹Assistant Professor, department of archeology, faculty of literature and humanities, University of Neyshabur, Neyshabur, Iran

²MA Student, department of archeology, faculty of literature and humanities, University of Neyshabur, Neyshabur, Iran

³Associate Professor, department of archeology, faculty of literature and humanities, University of Neyshabur, Neyshabur, Iran

⁴PhD Candidate, Prehistoric Studies, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran

Abstract

The formation and development of civilization from prehistoric times up to now is largely indebted to the discovery of metal. As early as the sixth and fifth millennia BCE, humans used metal to craft tools and weapons, and the practice persists to this day. As human knowledge advanced, the role of metal in shaping developments in agriculture, transportation, arts, and industries became more significant. Making weapons and metal arms is considered as a branch of metallurgy. However, due to the limited archeological research in the area, no focused research has been conducted on the weaponry of the Khurāsān region. With the establishment of the Khurāsān Museum, some of the metal weapons stored in the National Museum of Iran were transferred to this museum, most of which were seized from antiquities smugglers and therefore lacking in scientific documentation regarding their history and dating. The present study aims at establishing a relative chronology and understanding the cultural contexts of the analyzed swords. These objects are some of the cultural materials that lack proper documentation, therefore making scientific study and chronological analysis a necessity. The present study initially introduces, and then describes and classifies the swords in this collection of weaponry. Finally, the study employs the comparative approach to evaluate the dating and cultural context of the swords. The findings reveal the existence of five distinct classes of metal swords, with their relative chronology ranging from the Iron Age to the late historical period (according to comparative analysis).  These objects are composed of bronze, iron, or a combination of both metals, and their structure and appearance resemble those of objects discovered in north-central, north-western, and western regions of the Iranian plateau. However, a lack of in-situ archeological research has made attributing these objects to specific regions a challenging task.

Keywords

Khurāsān museum; weaponry; Iron Age; Bronze Age; comparative study

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