Darai Rockshelter
Darai Rockshelter (Persian: دارای, Kurdish:مرو دارای) is an archaeological site in the southwest of Kurdistan Province, in west Iran. It is located in the Sirwan River valley, between Naw and Asparez villages, in the Hawraman region. It faces NNW at an altitude of 760m a.s.l.The shelter was discovered during Darian Dam Archaeological Salvage Program in 2015, excavated in 2015–2016, and it was subsequently submerged in 2016.
Marou Darai | |
Location in Iran | |
| Alternative name | Kogella |
|---|---|
| Location | Kurdistan Province, Iran |
| Region | Hawraman |
| Coordinates | 35°09′47″N 46°22′01″E |
| Altitude | 760 m (2,493 ft) |
| Type | rockshelter |
| History | |
| Founded | ca. 70,000 BP |
| Abandoned | ca. 40,000 BP |
| Periods | Middle Paleolithic |
| Cultures | Mousterian |
| Associated with | Neanderthal |
| Site notes | |
| Excavation dates | 2016 |
| Archaeologists | Fereidoun Biglari |
| Condition | inundated |
| Ownership | Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts, Iran |
The Darian Dam Archeological Salvage Program (DDASP) was planned by the Iranian Center for Archaeological Research before flooding the Darian Dam reservoir. This archaeological program, under the general direction of Fereidoun Biglari, has conducted several seasons of archaeological surveys and excavations within the area of the reservoir that led to the discovery of a number of important Paleolithic and more later sites.