Abstract
Lorestan province is a mountainous region in the Central Zagros of western. Three Neolithic sites have previously been excavated in this region: Abdul Hussein in the Delfan plain, Chia Sabz in the Seymareh Valley, and Kallek Asadmord west of Pol-e Dokhtar. These settlements are dated between the early ninth to the early seventh millennium BCE and are associated with the Pre-Pottery Neolithic period. The pottery of Abdul Hussein belongs to the "Bag-e No" culture in Lorestan (Lower Chalcolithic period). Recent surveys have resulted in the identification of about 20 new Neolithic sites in this region. Meanwhile, three sites had pottery that had not been identified in the region. These three sites, named Roahol, Kargonah, and Chal-Ab are located in the Khorramabad and in the west of Khorramabad Valley. The only site where these potteries can be compared is the Alikosh in Dehloran plain. In the layers of the Mohammed Jafar, as Hole says, and in recent excavation confirmed by Darabi, three pottery groups have been identified, including Jafar plain, Jafar painted, and Red Khazineh. By studying sherds of pottery in the three sites in the Khorramabad valley, we can clearly see the presence of all three pottery groups introduced in the Alikosh in these sites. These potteries uniformity may indicate their belonging to a single community on either side of a vertical migration route, or it may represent close cultural links between Neolithic peoples of Lorestan highland and Dehloran plain.
Keywords: Lorestan, Neolithic, Nomadism, Roahol, Alikosh.
Introduction
Discovering a large number of goat and sheep bones from the Neolithic sites of Central Zagros and Southwest of Iran Based on some evidence, the process of domesticating goat began in the 9th millennium B.C. in this region. Some experts believe that goat and sheep were domesticated in the foothills of Zagros and Taurus (Hole 1989; 1996; Zeder 1999). Braidwood (1961) has introduced the Tepe Sarab, located in Highlands of Kermanshah, a seasonal settlement and has described its relationship with Jarmu. Mortensen (1974) considers Tepe Sarab as the summer settlement of the Guran’s residents. Smith (1976) proposes the settlement of Phase (D) in Ganj Dereh as a seasonal settlement in which occupancy lasted from spring to autumn, and its shepherd inhabitants migrated to the lowland areas during the cold season. Alizadeh (2003) has introduced Ganj Dareh and Asiab as the origin of people of Ali Kosh. Based on the studies conducted by Eeilberg and Edelberg in 1935 and 1964 in Lorestan, a relationship can be established between prehistoric and contemporary societies on the basis of the pastoral livelihood (Mortensen & Nicolaisen, 1993). Similar nomadic patterns and temporary settling have been common during the two aforementioned periods in the West of Iran, and mountainous roads and natural resources played a major role in adapting the nomadic patterns (Mortensen 1993). This pattern, in addition to Lorestan and Central Zagros, was reported in other Southwest Asian regions (Savard et al. 2006). Hole, based on ethno-archaeological studies conducted on the tribal roads of Deh Luran to Lorestan, proposed that the pioneers of food producers have had nomadic and pastoral livelihood during the Neolithic period of this region (Hole 1979; 1989). Further, the present study confirms the hypotheses, which have made the settlement pattern of nomadism and pastoralism in the Neolithic period of Lorestan.
 
Discussion
Ali Kosh Tape in Deh Luran plain and in the southwest of Iran was excavated in 1961 by Frank Hole (Hole et al. 1969; Darabi, 2018). Ali Kosh was divided into three settlement phases (Boz Mordeh, Ali Kosh and Mohammad Jaffar). This site belongs to the PPN and PN period. Mohammad Jaffar phase belongs to the PN period. Its settlement dates back to 7500 - 6000 BC. Hole (1969: 113-124) classifies types of potteries from Mohammad Jafar within three categories: 1)"Jaffar Plain", a buff, chaff-tempered ware with pinkish firing clouds; 2) "Jaffar painted", which is identical to Jaffar Plain except for the addition of geometric designs in fugitive red-ochre paint; and 3) "Khazineh Red", a chaff-and grit-tempered pottery with a soft red slip. In 2018, Ali Kosh was again excavated by Hojjat Darabi. This issue is also synchronous with the new results of dating. Recent dating shows that evidence of Neolithic in the Ali Kosh is related to the time period of 7500-6500 BC. The beginning of the pottery phase was about 7000 BC and unlike the previous results, it was ended in the middle of the seventh millennium BC in the site (Darabi, 2018: 35).
During the recent surveys in the Lorestan, identified three sites (Roahol, Kargona and Chalab) that related to the Neolithic period (Heydari 2006 & Bahrami 2010). Surface finds of these sites included chipped stone artefacts and pottery (Figs. 4-7). As mentioned above, one of the interesting findings of these three sites that is the subject of this article is the pottery sherds that were found from their surface survey. These types of pottery have not been reported from Lorestan so far. In terms of the pattern on the pottery and the color used to create the patterns, they were not comparable to the Sarab and Guran pottery, which were previously known as Zagros pottery Neolithic. Therefore, we referred to the pottery of Deh Luran plain and North Susiana sites (Ali Kosh, Chogha Bonout and Tulaˊi). Based on Hole's description of “Mohammad Jaffar pottery” (Jaffar Plain, Jaffar Painted and Khazineh Red) (1969: 113-124), it seemed that they are most similar to Lorestan Neolithic pottery. We have named this stage of Khorramabad prehistoric cultures the “Roahol phase” (Bahrami & Fazeli Nashli 2016). During the 2017 excavation in Tapeh Ali Kosh, were found all three species introduced by Hole (Darabi et al. 2018) (Fig. 3).
The finding of potteries in the Lorestan highlands similar to Ali Kosh Neolithic potteries in Deh Luran lowland indicates the existence of cultural connections between these two regions in the Neolithic period. Pastoralism is one of the enduring themes in the prehistory and history of the ancient Near East, and pastoralists play central roles in narratives that describe the economic, cultural, and political evolution of the region from the Neolithic Revolution to the rise of complex civilizations (Childe 1934; Porter 2012; Rosen 2016). The earliest forms of pastoralism developed in Southwest Asia, where sheep, goat, and cattle were first domesticated (Peters et al. 2005). The location of two contradictory geographical areas adjacent to each other (low and warm plains, and high and mountainous lands) is one of the grounds for the formation of nomadic communities. In different past times, there were cultural connections between the plain of Susiana and Lorestan. These cultural links have continued to present, mostly in the context of nomadic and herding communities. The existence of populations of Lorestan tribes in the northern regions of Susiana and Deh Luran plain has witnessed these extensive connections in recent centuries. Therefore, as some researchers such as; Hole, Braidwood, Mortensen and Alizadeh have said that the possibility of these connections can reach the Neolithic period and coincide with the domestication of goats and sheep. However, there is a possibility of such a situation and living conditions for Paleolithic periods and human groups in these periods to use food resources. However, there is a possibility of such a situation for the Paleolithic period, and perhaps human groups in this period moved between the two regions to use the food resources of both environments and escape the harsh weather conditions. In the author's survey in 2020, in the Miankuh area of Poldakhtar country in the south of Lorestan, some evidences were found that increases the possibility of this connection (Bahrami, 2020). Therefore, in the Middle East, the existence of these two different environments in the vicinity has always been attractive to mobile pastoral communities.
 
Conclusion
As mentioned above, the pottery found in the three newly discovered Neolithic sites in Lorestan is very similar to the three pottery types of Tapeh Ali Kosh in Deh Luran in terms of form, type, decorations and color of the designs. Hole classifies types of potteries from Mohammad Jafar within "Jaffar Plain", "Jaffar Painted, and "Khazineh Red", categories which may be burnished on pottery vessels. All three species were found in the 2017 re-excavation of Hojjat Darabi in Tapeh Ali Kosh. In all three Neolithic sites of Roahol, Kargona, and Chalab in Lorestan, all three introduced species were found in Ali Kosh. Today's nomadic communities, they spent spring and summer in the mountains and cool heights of Lorestan, and autumn and winter in the low and warm lands of north Khuzistan and Deh Luran plain. We believe that these pottery similarities between the two regions are due to the presence of life based on the mobile pastoral system in this part of Iran in the eighth and seventh millennium BC. Probably, during this time, like today's nomadic communities, they spent warm seasons in the highlands of Lorestan, and cold seasons in the lowland of Khuzistan and Deh Luran.