A First Look to Stratigraphy and Formation Processes at the Citadel of Shahr-i Gholgholah, Bamiyan, Afghanistan

We present the results of a short field campaign conducted in June 2025 at the citadel (fortress) of Shahr-i Gholgholah, Bamiyan, Afghanistan. The investigation focused on entirely non-destructive archaeological methods to assess the current state of preservation of the monument and to document the processes of erosion affecting its defensive structures, destroyed during the Mongol conquest of 1221 CE. The research is part of a broader programme aimed at the comprehensive topographic and archaeological documentation of the site, including the preparation of the first detailed map of the fortress based on integrated topographic survey and surface evidence. Along the eastern edge of the citadel, immediately outside the crest of the eastern defensive wall, stratigraphic observations were undertaken to shed new light into the site's preservation and the depositional evolution of its eastern fortifications.