ABSTRACT
The privacy of the intimate inner part of the house played an important role in Elam almost over all periods. From the early era of Elamite history little is known about public constructions. The eldest well-known examples with administrative character belong to the Middle Elamite period. Some of the most interesting and mysterious constructions in Elam are the mud-brick buildings with baked-brick underground tombs planned as burial places for deceased individuals of the elite. For sacred architecture from the early era of Elamite history, some partly recovered structures are known. Among the monumental complexes at Haft Tappeh built at the beginning of the Middle Elamite period, some were provided with large terraces of mud-brick. Traditionally, Elamite sanctuaries were protected and not easily accessible. An understanding of isolated sacral space initially lay behind the structure of the sanctuaries as well as the foundation of the holy area, which was provided with a monumental wall separated from the rest of the city.
