Professor of Archaeology of Ancient Iran at the University of Bologna, Department of Cultural Heritage, campus of Ravenna. From 2015 to 2019 has been President of the Societas Iranologica Europaea. His main interests regard the archaeology of pre-Islamic Iran and Central Asia, from the Achaemenian to the Sasanian period, with a special stress in the results of the encounter between Hellenism and the cultures of the Iranian and Indian worlds. The geographical areas on which he has concentrated his researches are on one side the North-West of the Indo-Pakistan subcontinent, on the other Fars (Southern Iran).
Since 2005 he is the Italian director of the Joint Iranian-Italian Archaeological Mission working in Fars at the sites of Tang-e Bolaghi, Pasargadae (Tol-e Takht) and Persepolis West/Tol-e Ajori.
http://www.unibo.it/SitoWebDocente/default.htm?UPN=pierfrancesco.callieri@unibo.it
Education
1987 - PhD in "Archeologia-Rapporti tra Oriente e Occidente"(Archaeology-Relationships between East and West), (24.06.1987), at the Istituto Universitario Orientale di Napoli; title of dissertation: "I sigilli e le cretule del nord-ovest del subcontinente indiano e dell'Afghanistan (IV sec. a.C.-X sec. d.C.)" (Seals and Sealings from the North-West of the Indian Subcontinent and Afghanistan – 4th century BC – 10th century AD); tutor: Prof. Maurizio Taddei.
1979 - Laurea in Lettere (degree in Arts), marks 110/110 cum laude, (11.07.1979), at the Università degli Studi di Roma, title of dissertation: "Ricerche sulla struttura della monarchia arsacide" (Researches on the structure of the Arsacid monarchy); Subject: History of Central Asia; tutor: Prof. Paolo Daffinà.
Working position
2012 – Full professor at the Department of Cultural Heritage of the University of Bologna, campus of Ravenna, where he continues his teachings of the former faculty. From 2014 to 2018 he has been a teaching member of the PhD Course “Studies in Cultural Heritage”.
2008 – Full professor at the Faculty of Preservation of Cultural Heritage of the University of Bologna, at Ravenna, for the SSD L-OR/16; in this faculty he taught "Iranian Archaeology and Art History" (BA degree) and "Archaeology of pre-Islamic Iran" (MA degree);
2005-2008 – "Professore straordinario" at the Faculty of Preservation of Cultural Heritage of the University of Bologna, at Ravenna, for the SSD L-OR/16
2000-2005 – Associate professor at the Faculty of Preservation of Cultural Heritage of the University of Bologna, at Ravenna, for the SSD L-OR/16
1997-2000 – Lecturer at the Faculty of Preservation of Cultural Heritage of the University of Bologna, at Ravenna, for the SSD L-OR/16
1991-1997 – Lecturer at the Faculty of Arts, University of Bologna.
In the various years he lectured in Oriental Archaeology, Iranian Archaeology, Iranian Archaeology and Art History, Indian Archaeology and Art History.
Awards
2017 - 8th Farabi International Award, Tehran: Top Researcher in Iranian Studies.
2019 - Prix Roman et Tania Ghirshman by the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres, Paris, fro the volume Persepolis West (Fars, Iran): Report on the field work carried out by the Iranian-Italian Joint Archaeological Mission in 2008-2009, written with A. Askari Chaverdi.
Scientific associations
2015- 2019 – President of the Societas Iranologica Europaea (European Society of Iranology).
2011 - Member of the Associazione ISMEO, from 2011 to 2017 Member of the Ruling Board.
2005-2014 - Representative for Italy in the “European Association of South Asian Archaeologists”.
1994-2016 - Member of the “Società degli Orientalisti”, being a member of the Ruling Board from 1997, as the secretary-tresurer.
1993 - Member of the “Societas Iranologica Europaea”, from 2007 to 2009 Treasurer, from 2009 Member of the Ruling Board.
1990 - Member of the “Association pour l'Avancement des études Iraniennes”.
1988 - Member of the IsMEO, then IsIAO, from 2004 to 2011 in the Scientific Board.
Teaching activities abroad
2014 –"7èmes Conférences d’études iraniennes Ehsan et Latifeh Yarshater" (5 lectures) at the Collège de France, Paris, Architecture et representations dans l’Iran sassanide.
2014 - Lecturing for the duration of two modules (“Median archaeology” and “Achaemenid archaeology”) at the Shiraz University.
2013 – Lecturing (5 lectures) in “Iranian Archaeology” at the SAMPU, Beida Beijing University.
2007 – “Quatre leçons” at the Collège de France, Paris, on the archaeology of Fars during the Hellenistic period.
2001 – Lecturing on the archaeology of Buddhism in the North-West of the Indian subcontinent for the teaching of Indian Epigraphy at the University of Seattle, USA (Prof. Richard Salomon, from 09 to 12.01.2001).
Other teaching activities in Italy
2009/10-2014/15, 2016/17 – Complimentary lecturing in “Iranian archaeology and art history” within the SSD L-OR/16 at the Faculty of Arts of the University of Rome Roma “La Sapienza”, MA degree.
2005/06-2008/09 – Lecturing on several modules on history and archaeology of pre-Islamic Iran within the SSD L-OR/14 at the Facoltà di Lettere e Filosofia of the Università di Roma “La Sapienza”, BA and MA degrees.
1995-1998 – Professor of Iranian archaeology and art history for the School of Specialization in Archaeology of the Università di Bologna.
Academic activities
In 2018 he has been a member of the delegation of the Islamic Republic of Iran at the World Heritage Conference in Bahrein, contributing to the inscription of the "Sassanid Archaeological Landscape of Fars" in the WHS list.
In 2012 and 2013, member of the National Commission for Habilitation to teaching for the Sector 10/N-3, Cultures of Central and East Asia: scrutiny of c. 250 candidates.
From 2012 to 2014. Scientific Coordinator of the Marie Curie Action project FP7-PEOPLE-2011 GA 229665 – SELOPerse, carried out by Dr S. Gondet.
From September 2009 to October 2012, Dean of the Faculty of Preservation of Cultural Heritage of the University of Bologna, at Ravenna.
From 2005 to 2009, “Presidente del Consiglio di Corso di Laurea in Beni Culturali”, Faculty of Preservation of Cultural Heritage of the University of Bologna, at Ravenna.
He has been member of commission for selection procedures of various teaching positions and PhD examinations in the Universities of Bologna, Naples L’Orientale, Venice Ca’ Foscari. Rome La Sapienza, Turin, Lyon “Lumière”, Strasbourg, EPHE-Paris, Sydney, Jerusalem, Tehran “Tarbiat Modarres”, Peshawar.
Research activities
His main interests regard the archaeology of pre-Islamic Iran and Central Asia, from the Achaemenian to the Sasanian period, with a special stress in the results of the encounter between Hellenism and the cultures of the Iranian and Indian worlds.
The geographical areas on which he has concentrated his researches are on one side the North-West of the Indian subcontinent, on the other Fars (S Iran).
Since his University studies, the interest for the Iranian world concentrated on the Hellenistic and Parthian periods, when interesting and complex acculturation processes took place, at the basis of what Daniel Schlumberger called the “Hellenised East”.
He has started field activity in Pakistan, where under the guidance of Domenico Faccenna he has worked in the field of Buddhist archaeology.
In 1984 he started an independent project on a site which has yielded the most important evidence on the Indo-Greek period, Bir-kot-ghwandai, lasting until the Hindu Shahi and Early Muslim period. The project was temporarily halted by the political situation of the Swat Valley.
Beside studying the artefacts from this site, objects of several publications, and particularly of pottery, Callieri has specialised in the Gandharan seals, a field for which his doctoral thesis, published in English, represents the first and only monograph, in which the aspects of relationships with the Western traditions are also investigated.
In 2005, as a result of the new presence of foreign archaeological missions in Iran, he has widened his field of activity to the region of Fars, starting a programme of re-examination of the evidence of Achaemenid and post-Achaemenid age. With this programme he has started investigations in the rural site of Tang-e Bolaghi, has then proceeded to Pasargadae and finally reached the prestigious site of Persepolis. Here he has concentrated on the location of the everyday town of Persepolis and on the excavation and study of the proto-Achamenid building of Tol-e Ajori, with relief glazed brick decoration of Babylonian origin. In 2019 he has started a new project on the Sasanian period in Southern Fars and the coast of the Persian Gulf.
From 2005 – Is the Italian director of the Iranian-Italian Joint Archaeological Mission in Fars of the Research Institute for Cultural Heritage and Tourism of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the University of Bologna and the Shiraz University.
From 2000 to 2012 – Has been the director of the IsIAO Italian Archaeological Mission Pakistan, operating in the valley of Swat (from 2007 with dr. L.M. Olivieri acting as a co-director).
Field work
2008-2021 – Has directed twelve excavation campaigns with an Iranian-Italian Joint Mission in the Persepolis plain, sites of Persepolis West and Tol-e Ajori, within two successive five years collaboration projects with the Iranian Centre for Archaeological Research and the Research Institute for Cultural Heritage and Tourism of the Islamic Republic of Iran, focussing on archaeological research on the inhabited settlements at the foot of the Terrace at Persepolis and on conservation activities on the Terrace itself. In 2019 he has started a new project "From Firuzabad to the Persian Gulf".
2006-2007 – Has co-directed two excavation campaigns with the Iranian-Italian Joint Mission at the Toll-e Takht at Pasargadae (Iran).
2006-2007 – Has taken part as a counselor in the activities of the IsIAO Italian Archaeological Mission in Iraqi Kurdistan, directed by Professor Carlo Cereti, focussing on archaeological study and conservation work of the Sasanian monuments at Paikuli.
2005-2006 – Has co-directed three excavation campaigns with the Iranian-Italian Joint Mission in the frame of the international project of rescue excavations “Sivand Dam Archaeological Rescue Project” in the area of the Sivand Dam (Pasargadae, Iran).
1984, 1987, 1990-1992, 1999-2000 – Has directed the excavations of the IsMEO-IsIAO Italian Archaeological Mission in Pakistan in the historic settlement at Bir-kot-ghwandai, Swat.
1989, 1993, 1994 – Has taken part in the survey campaigns of the IsMEO Archaeological Mission in Margiana (Turkmenistan), under the direction of Prof. Maurizio Tosi, in the frame of a collaboration between IsMEO, the Institute of Archaeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Turkmenian University of Ashgabat.
1977-1982 – Has taken part in the excavations of the IsMEO Italian Archaeological Mission in Pakistan in the Buddhist sanctuary of Saidu Sharif I, Swat, under the direction of Dr Domenico Faccenna.
Editorial activities
From 2018 – Scientific committee of the journal
Bastanpazhuhi, issued by the RICHT, Tehran.
From 2018 – Scientific committee of the journal Vostok-Oriens, issued by the Russian Academy of Sciences.
From 2014 – Scientific committee of the journal Vestnik Drevnej Istorii, issued by the Russian Academy of Sciences.
From 2011 – Scientific committee of the popular journal Archeologia Viva.
From 2005 - Scientific committee of the journal Conservation Science in Cultural Heritage issued by the Department of Cultural Heritage, University of Bologna.
From 2000 – Scientific committee of the journal Ancient Civilizations from Scythia to Siberia, issued from the Russian Academy of Sciences and Brill.
2003 - 2004 – Editorial board of the Enciclopedia Archeologica of the Istituto Treccani with direction of the section Iran.
1989 - 1997 Permanent collaboration (editor-author) with the Editorial board of the Enciclopedia dell'Arte Antica of the Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana, in order to prepare the Secondo Supplemento 1971-1994 under the direction of Prof. Giovanni Pugliese Carratelli.
1991 - 1995 Editorial staff of the journal Studi di Egittologia e di Antichità puniche, Università di Bologna.
1990 – Collaboration with Prof. M. Taddei in the editing of the proceedings of the international congress South Asian Archaeology 1987, Rome, IsMEO.
1989-90 Participation for the section Oriental studies, to the bibliography of publications printed in Italy between 1983 and 1990in the field of archaeology, organised by the Ministry of Culture for the exhibition of the Italian Archaeological Books, Cairo 1990.
1987 – Collaboration with Dr. A. Filigenzi in the editing of the volume by Giuseppe Tucci, On Swat. Historical and Archaeological Notes, Rome, IsIAO.
1982 – Editing of the Catalogue of the documentary exhibition Italian Archaeological Mission (IsMEO), Pakistan, Swat, 1956-1981, organised in Peshawar on the occasion of the "First International Conference on Pakistan Archaeology".
Researches on methodological and archaeometrical problems
1989-1991 – Participation in the programme of informatised cataloguing “Corpus of the Gandhara Sculptures”, directed by Dr. Domenico Faccenna within the CNR Strategic Project "Tecnologie del passato e sul passato".
1986-1987 – Collaboration with the ENEA for the use of thermoluminescence for dating ceramics from the excavations at Bir-kot-ghwandai, Swat.
Exhibitions
2019 - Exhibition "60 years of collaboration Iran-Italy in the field of Cultural heritage"
2016 – Exhibition “Tori e leoni dell’antica Persia”, Aquileia, 24.06-30.09.2016
2011 – Exhibition “A Oriente. Città, uomini e dèi sulle vie della seta”, Roma, 21.10.2011-26.02.2012, in collaboration with F. D’Arelli
2006 – Exhibitions “Valli della Memoria. Antiche Genti, Luoghi e Immagini dello Swat/Valleys of Memory. Ancient People, Sites and Images from Swat”, Islamabad and Roma, December 2006, in collaboration with L. Colliva, M. Galli, R. Micheli, E. Morigi, L.M. Olivieri.
2001 – Exhibition “Il Maestro di Saidu Sharif. Alle origini dell'arte del Gandhara”, opened in Roma, Museo Mazionale d'Arte Orientale, on the 18.04.2002, in collaboration with Anna Filigenzi.
Congresses and lectures
Has taken part as a speaker in the following congresses:
- First International Conference on Pakistan Archaeology (Peshawar University, 1982);
- Eurasia: un continente (Roma, IsMEO, 1983);
- South Asian Archaeology 1987 (Venezia, 1987);
- South Asian Archaeology 1989 (Parigi, 1989);
- South Asian Archaeology 1991 (Berlino, 1991);
- Bologna Nationes: l'India (Bologna, 1992);
- Seals of the World, British Museum (Londra, 1992);
- Archivi e sigilli nel mondo ellenistico (Torino, 1993);
- La Persia e l’Asia centrale da Alessandro al X secolo (Roma, Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, 1994);
- South Asian Archaeology 1995 (Cambridge, 1995);
- Weihrauch und Seide (Wien, Kunsthistorisches Museum, 1996);
- South Asian Archaeology 1997 (Roma, 1997);
- Storia della scienza e beni culturali (Ravenna, 1998);
- Oriente & Occidente. Convegno in ricordo di Mario Bussagli (Roma, 1998);
- Fourth European Conference of Iranian Studies (Paris, 1999)
- Gandharan Buddhism: an Interdisciplinary Approach (Toronto, 1999)
- On the Cusp of an Era (Kansas City, 2000)
- South Asian Archaeology 2001 (Paris, 2001);
- Current Research in Sasanian Archaeology and History (University of Durham, 2001);
- La Persia e Bisanzio (Rome, Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, 2001);
- Giuseppe Tucci. Una certa idea dell’Oriente (Roma, Accademia di Romania, 2002);
- Fifth Conference of the Societas Iranologica Europaea (Ravenna, 2003);
- Ancient Iranian Archaeology, History and Philology: New Studies and Research at the Faculty of Preservation of Cultural Heritage of the University of Bologna, Ravenna (Tehran, National Museum, 2004).
- 9th Annual Symposium on Iranian Archaeology (Tehran, 2007);
- 6th European Conference of Iranian Studies (Wien, 2007);
- The Persian Gulf in Antiquity (Durham, 2008);
- The Hunas in the history and archaeology of Central Asia (Wien, 2008);
- 10th Annual Symposium on Iranian Archaeology (Bandar Abbas, 2008);
- Asian Sciences in Humanities (Prague, European Science Foundation, 2009);
- The World in Antiquity. Conference in Memory of Academic Gregory Bongard-Levin (Moscow 2009);
- 7th European Conference of Iranian Studies (Cracow, 2011);
- Human Development in Landscape (Kiel 2013);
- The Administration of the Achaemenid Empire (Basel 2013);
- La religion des Achéménides : confrontation des sources (Collège de France, Paris 2013);
- 12th Annual Symposium on Iranian Archaeology (Tehran, 2014);
- 13th Annual Symposium on Iranian Archaeology (Tehran, 2015);
- 8th European Conference of Iranian Studies (St. Petersburg, 2015);
- 15th Annual Symposium on Iranian Archaeology (Tehran, 2017).
- 9th European Conference of Iranian Studies (Berlin, 2019).
-From 17th to 26th November 2014 has presented at the Collège de France 5 lectures for the 7èmes Conférences d’études iraniennes Ehsan et Latifeh Yarshater, “Architecture et representations dans l’Iran sassanide.
-From 10th to 23rd November 2015 he lectured in China at Beijing (Beida University, Chinese Central Academy of Fine Arts, Italian Cultural Institute), Dunhuang (Dunhuang Academy), Xi’an (Northwestern University).
Has also lectured on many occasions in Italy and abroad.
Publications
Is the author of more than 150 publications, including 8 monographs, articles, encyclopaedia entries, reviews, regarding both field work and various questions of archaeological, art-historical, historical and religious subject linked to archaeological activity in the area between Mesopotamia and Northern India in the pre-islamic historic period, published between 1980 and 2013 (see selection of the most recent publications in “Main Scientific Publications”). See List of Publications.
Is the author of the following monographs:
a - Saidu Sharif I (Swat, Pakistan). 1. The Buddhist sacred
area. The Monastery (IsMEO reports and memoirs, xxiii 1), Rome
1989;
b Bir-kot-ghwandai 1990-1992. A preliminary report on the
excavations of the Italian archaeological mission, IsMEO
(supplemento n. 73 agli Annali-IUO, 52, 1992, 4) (in
collaborazione con P. Brocato, A. Filigenzi, M. Nascari, L.M.
Olivieri), Napoli 1992;
c - Seals and sealings from the North-West of the Indian
subcontinent and Afghanistan (4th century BC - 11th century AD).
Local, indian,
sasanian, graeco-persian, sogdian, roman, with contributions by
e. errington, r. garbini, ph. gignoux, n. sims-williams, w. zwalf
(dissertationes, i), Naples 1997;
d - L'archéologie du Fars à l'époque hellénistique (Persika,
11), Paris 2007;
e – Architecture et représentations dans l’Iran sassanide (Studia Iranica, Cahiers 50), Paris 2014;
f - Sokunatgâhhâ-ye rustâ'i az dowrehâ-ye haxâmaneshi ve farâhaxâmaneshi. Mohavvate-ye 76 va 77 Tang-e Bolâghi, Pâsârgad (with A. Askari Chaverdi), Shiraz 2014;
g - Ka Liening, Feilizhenqi, Aoliweili (Wei Zhengzhong, Wang Qian ed. and transl.), Jiantuoluo Yishu Tanyuan《 [At the origin of Gandharan Art], Shanghai 2015;
h - Tang-e Bolaghi (Fars), Sites TB76 And TB77: Rural Settlements of the Achaemenid and Post-Achaemenid Periods. Report of the archaeological rescue excavations carried out in 2005 and 2006 by the joint Irano-Italian mission of the Iranian Center for Archaeological Research and the University of Bologna, with the collaboration of IsIAO, Italy (with A. Askari Chaverdi), (BAR International Series 2799), Oxford 2016;
i - Persepolis West (Fars, Iran): Report on the field work carried out by the Iranian-Italian Joint Archaeological Mission in 2008-2009 (con A. Askari Chaverdi) (BAR Int Series 2870), Oxford 2017, ISBN 978 1 4073 16086.
He is also the author of more than one hundred fifty
publications (articles, encyclopaedia entries, reviews) on the
archaeology and art history of Iran, Central Asia, Afghanistan and
Pakistan.
