Ancient Routes and Historical Face of Negin Kavir District of Fahraj Country (Cultural Landscape of Bam)

Fahraj is located in the southeast of Kerman Province and in a region on the southern margin of the Lut Desert known as Lut-e Zangi Ahmad. Before the recent studies, the historical background and face of this land was hidden in the shadow of the great magnificence of other regions such as Bam and its glorious citadel, Arg-e Bam. Most of the historical geographical texts of the early Islamic centuries have referred to Fahraj, which highlights its importance at that time. In the past, Fahraj was located on the ancient road connecting the Fars province to the eastern regions and was considered to be one of the areas linking the southwest of Iran to its more eastern zones. It also enjoyed particular splendor during that time, the remains of which are presently existing in the form of historical building, structures, and vast sites. This land was the meeting point of some important ancient routes which dated back to the Achaemenid period. These routes were active until the early and middle Islamic periods, and The images on cylinder seals, on the other hand, hold a noteworthy place in creating and delivering certain types of institutionalized or representational realities. They can create, transfer, and reproduce some beliefs among the members of their society which are deemed necessary in the formation of its structure. This paper discusses the images and representations of women’s bodies on cylinder seals and their rolein the creation of the institutionalized realities which pertain to women and womenhood. The main elements in relation to womenhood which have been identified in this study include women’s A forms, crafted forms, collective and dramatic-ritualized forms, and women’s B forms with an emphasis on gendered body. The findings also demonstrate that such images were presented and transformed in conformity with various social contexts and backgroundsin three cultural-social periods or trends in ancient Susiana (3500-1000 BC) in the southwest of Iran.