The Achaemenid Period in the Samarkand Area (Sogdiana)

Abstract

The joint Italian-Uzbek activity aimed at realising an Archaeological Map of the Middle Zeravshan Valley, started in 1999 identified and documented (1999-2008) the archaeological evidences in the area and a series of significant canalization works, originated by the river. Among these, the Dargom canal, already mentioned by Tolomeus in his Geografikà as the main water restocking of Μαρακάνδα (Afrasyab) was certainly the most important; in the list of the rivers in the middle-Persian sources, the Dargom is recorded as well3. The Italian-Uzbek activity was aimed at protecting and valorising the archaeological-environmental patrimony of the area on one hand, and to analyze, in details, the ancient settlement scheme, from the early phases up to now on the other.