Reassessing the Lithic Industries of Ganj Dareh: A Typo-Technological Analysis of the National Museum of Iran Collection

Ghorbali, Zahra; Valipour, Hamidreza

doi:10.22034/jinm.2026.734275

Reassessing the Lithic Industries of Ganj Dareh: A Typo-Technological Analysis of the National Museum of Iran Collection

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Zahra Ghorbali ¹

Hamidreza Valipour ²

¹ Department of Archaeology, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran

² Department of Archaeology, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran.

10.22034/jinm.2026.734275

Abstract

The lithic assemblage from Ganj Dareh, a site located in Kermanshah, is currently housed in the National Museum of Iran. Despite its considerable significance, it has received comparatively limited scholarly attention relative to other contemporary assemblages from the central Zagros region. The present study seeks to reassess this lithic collection through a typo-technological approach. Furthermore, it aims to provide new insights into the collection, the Neolithic traditions of the central Zagros, and the evolution of lithic production from the Pre-Pottery Neolithic to later phases. The collection comprises 4,865 pieces, all made from chert. The diagnostic tools identified include sickle blades, borers, backed bladelets, and various types of scrapers, including end, round, and side scrapers. The core types—conical, semi-conical and bullet-shaped—demonstrate the use of pressure techniques in lithic production. Analyzing this collection and comparing it with contemporary lithic assemblages from the central Zagros region confirms its assignment to the early M’lefatian industry.

Keywords

Kermanshah

Central Zagros

Ganj Dareh

Neolithic

Lithic Industry

Typology

Subjects