Mahnaz Sharifi - Iranian Centre for Archaeological Research, Tehran, Iran.

In the wake of the Kura-Araxes horizon, a major cultural shift brake out with painted ware replacing the glossy black burnished pottery. Painted ware, also termed Urmia Ware, became widespread in Northwest Iran in the Middle Bronze Age. The same scenario is reflected at the archaeological mound of Barde Zard in the Little Zab Basin. Situated in Piranshahr city of West Azerbaijan Province, this settlement represents one of the several formed across the basin in prehistoric times. The fieldwork at the site was aimed at specifying the occupation sequence, the cultural interactions of its residents with neighboring regions, and the characteristics of the Middle Bronze Age there. The excavations at the mound brought to light a mid-Bronze structure associated with a burial. Also identified were cultural ties with the Urmia Lake Basin and inspirations from the Khabur tradition of Mesopotamia.

Northwest Iran, Urmia, Middle Bronze Age, Little Zab River, Barde Zard