The prehistoric sites of the Khorramabad Valley include five caves and one rock shelter within a narrow ecological corridor rich in water, flora, and fauna. Human occupation dates back 63,000 years, with evidence from the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic periods. These sites reveal Mousterian and Baradostian cultures, offering insights into early human evolution and migration from Africa to Eurasia. Artifacts such as decorative objects and advanced stone tools highlight the cognitive and technological development of early humans in the Zagros Mountains. The area remains underexplored, holding significant potential for future archaeological discoveries.

Brief synthesis The Prehistoric Sites of the Khorramabad Valley comprise five prehistoric caves and one rock shelter with evidence of human occupation dating back to 63,000 BP. These are the Kaldar, Ghamari, Gilvaran, Yafteh and Kunji caves, as well as the Gar Arjeneh Rock Shelter (component parts 1 to 6). The Khorramabad Valley is located in the Central Zagros Mountain Range, one of the key routes of human dispersal out of Africa. The numerous caves and rock shelters, ample water resources, rich fauna and flora, suitable stone sources for the tool industry, and relatively mild climate have created favourable conditions for human settlement since the Middle Palaeolithic period. Archaeological excavations and study of the artefacts excavated on the sites have established the scientific chronology of human development in the valley. The Mousterian layers in Kunji Cave testify to the domination of the Neanderthals in the valley during the Middle Palaeolithic. During the transition between the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic periods, anatomically modern humans arrived in the valley, expanded their settlements and eventually supplanted the Neanderthals, illustrating the earliest transition phase in the Zagros region, which shed light on the debate over human migration routes out of Africa into Eurasia. The pendants and other decorative objects discovered at the sites, the evidence of using ochre pigments, as well as a decorated piece of terracotta mark the emergence of human cognitive behaviour and belief systems. The shell pendants were possibly sourced from the Persian Gulf, indicating the existence of communication and exchange routes between the Khorramabad Valley and the lowlands of the Persian Gulf during the Upper Palaeolithic period. Large numbers and varieties of stone tools discovered at the sites bear witness to the sophisticated stone tool technologies of the Baradostian culture that surpassed contemporaneous developments in the Zagros Mountains. Criterion…