The Mosalla of Paein Khiaban of Mashhad is one of the largest and most beautiful historic mosallas in Iran, built at the order of King Suleiman I during the Safavid era. according to inscription on the tile of the central porch, the date of construction and completion of the building is 1087 A.H. The architectural structure of the building consists of a high central porch in the middle and two domed porticoes on the sides. Both the internal and external surfaces of the building are decorated with various architectural elements, such as stucco work, tile work, painting and muqarnas. Among the various decorative employed in this structure, the mosaic tiles of the mihrab are unparalleled in terms of beauty and sophistication. Laboratory analysis of the chemical composition of the glaze of the altar tiles using SEM-EDX method demonstrated strong agreement with findings from other researchers, indicating a continuity of the tile-making tradition and glaze production with similar technology throughout the Safavid era across various r regions of Iran. A petrological study of the mineral composition of the body of the tiles also revealed the use of a similar and appropriate mineralogical composition, paired with good firing in their production, which contributed to the strength and durability of the tiles. The pathology of the building and its decorations indicated that a combination of different physical, chemical and human factors caused the destruction and erosion of the structure and its decorations, including the mosaic tiles. Among these, human activities and irregular urban development surrounding the building, along withimproper and careless restorations, played the main role in the destruction and erosion of the tiles. Considering the importance and sophistication of the mosaic tiles of the altar, following laboratory studies, the tiles of this part of the building were conserved and restored. For this purpose, after the primary conservation measures through cleaning and consolidation, the missing parts were restored according to the principles and theoretical foundations of restoration in the method of complementary restoration through color-matching.

The Chogha Zanbil world heritage site in Khuzestan is one of the most important Elamite sites, constructed using materials such as mud bricks and baked bricks. Today, the use of petrographic methods holds a special place in archaeometric studies of historical materials like bricks and stones. This cost-effective method allows for the extraction of valuable technical information from historical materials. The main objective of this article is to identify the mineralogical characteristics of historical brick samples from Chogha Zanbil through the microscopic examination of their thin sections. The details examined in the bricks include the types of minerals that make up the bricks, texture (including grain size and shape), porosity, types of impurities, and their distribution, all presented in detail along with relevant images. The results of the studies indicate that the apparent color of the bricks from Chogha Zanbil ranges widely from yellow, brown, and red to green. Microscopic examinations not only introduce some physical characteristics of the bricks from Chogha Zanbil but also identify the main minerals present in their structure, which include iron oxide grains, calcite, quartz, chert, gypsum, fine mica grains, and feldspar. Additionally, the conducted studies provide a clear picture of the weathering processes affecting the bricks, particularly under the influence of soluble salts.

The Iron Age in Iran (550-1450 BC) and beyond, represents a period characterized by significant social, cultural, economic and technological transformations during its evolutionary stages. Zavarehvar is an Iron Age settlement site located in the Varamin plain in central region of Iran, where numerous excavations have been carried out by various archeologists in recent decades. During the 2017 excavation at the Zavarehvar site, a number of gray pottery pieces related to burials were discovered. Given the distribution of the Iron Age cemeteries and the limited technical studies conducted on these potteries, our understanding of the production methods such as texture, components, and manufacturing processes is crucial for comprehending the pottery production technology of this specific period. Therefore, the results from laboratory studies can be beneficial in finding the production process of these artifacts. This research aimed to provide more precise knowledge for conducting comparative studies and determining the local origin of these artifacts by examining nine Iron Age pottery samples from this region using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and petrographic analysis of thin sections. The results indicated that the main phases of the potteries, based on petrography, include quartz (SiO2), and calcite. The ICP-MS results also largely confirmed some of the petrographic observations. However, a significant part of the chemical clustering of ceramics was not due to heterogeneity in elemental composition, nor to differences in the clay sources used. Additionally, we can say that the potteries are local origin, since the soils studied showed significant similarities in trace elements with the pottery samples, confirming their local origin.