An Anthropological Study of the Contexts for Belief in the Existence of Treasure in Mazandaran

Abstract
The belief in the existence of treasure has been prevalent among many people in the world. Mazandaran province is one of the regions where this belief is very widespread due to its geographical, natural and historical conditions. A lot of its people believe that the treasures of Mazandaran can be found by having a treasure-finding device, treasure map, amulets and people who are knowledgeable. This is while many of these stories and beliefs are false. It was expected that with the increase in knowledge and awareness in the contemporary era, such beliefs would fade. However, the volume of activity of unauthorized diggers and the wide spread of stories related to treasure show the opposite of this expectation. Therefore, the main issue of the present research is why such beliefs are still common among people and why this belief is strong in Mazandaran province. To answer such a question, in addition to analyzing historical documents, treasure-finding news in the media and social networks was also examined. Also, 25 Mazandaran residents who believed in the existence of treasure in the province, some of whom had a history of illegal excavation, were interviewed. These findings were then categorized and analyzed based on George Foster’s theory of “limited good”. Accordingly, the existence of limited opportunities for access to resources and economic progress not only causes people to tend towards treasure hunting, but also causes anyone who has achieved economic progress by any means to be accused of treasure hunting by the public.
Keywords: Treasure Hunting, Digging, Treasure Stories, Mazandaran Province, Limited Goodness, George Foster. 
 
1. Introduction
The belief in the existence of treasure and the many stories about treasure have an ancient history in the world; however, recent research (for example, Dillinger, 2012; Chelik, 2020) shows that the belief in the existence of treasure and treasure hunting has grown greatly in modern times. Therefore, many people who believe in the existence of such a hidden reservoir try to reach it to make their dream of becoming rich overnight a reality. Mazandaran province, due to its specific geographical conditions (tall mountains and dense forests that make easy to conceal everything in it) and its historical background (which has been the location of many local and rebellious governments against the caliphs of Islam and the kings of Iran), is among the regions where the belief in the existence of treasure is strong (Hashemi-Moghaddam et al., 1404). Many of these people cause irreparable damage to historical or natural sites by digging in them. The main question of the present study is: What are the most important factors and grounds for believing in the existence of treasure in Mazandaran Province?
Many studies have been conducted on treasure hunting in Iran, mainly focusing on the legal and regulatory status of this work (Shafia, 2013; Shakeri and Khodabakhshi, 2011; Rezaei-Rad et al., 2012; Shahorani, 2013; Arzhang, 2014; Safaei, 2018; Soroush, 2019). Some also focus on the economic aspect of digging and the financial needs of diggers (for example: Arvand, 2012; Ghani-Kolheloo, 2009). Khalili and Rezaei (2019) have studied unauthorized excavations and accidental discoveries in Mazandaran over the past two centuries based on written documents and folk tales. The closest research to the present study was conducted by Hashemi Moghaddam et al. (1404) on the reasons for the failure of unauthorized diggers and treasure hunters from the perspective of Mazandaran people, which shows that treasure hunters and the people of Mazandaran believe that supernatural forces such as magic and talismans prevent them from accessing treasures.
The most important foreign research includes the following: Onder Çelik (2020), in his doctoral thesis on the treasure hunt by Turkish Kurds in areas where Armenians were massacred in 1915, uses an ethnographic method to find the narratives of treasure hunters in the Van region of Turkey. Johannes Dillinger (2012) shows the relationship between treasure hunting and supernatural forces in Europe and North America in the early modern era in an anthropological study. George Foster proposed the theory of “limited good” about beliefs related to treasure in 1971. In his opinion, in societies with a stagnant economy and no possibility of economic progress, anyone who becomes rich may be accused of treasure hunting by those around them, because they believe that in this society, good is so limited that it is not possible to normally earn a large amount of good and income. This view of Foster is the theoretical framework of the present study, which was obtained through interviews with 28 people who believe in the existence of treasure in Mazandaran.
 
2. Findings
As stated in the introduction, many Mazandaran citizens have a deep belief in the existence of treasure in this region, and their most important reasons for this belief include the following:
1.The special geographical and historical situation of Mazandaran is such that many people believe it was a suitable place to hide treasures. Because many local governments have been present here before and after Islam (Akbari Mafakher. 2012: 34; Esmaili, 2008; Shayestefar, 2003; Azami Sangsari, 2015: 3) and because the dense Hyrcanian forests and the towering Alborz mountains have been suitable places to hide treasures, the wealth of these local governments has been hidden in these forests and mountains. For example, interviewee number 19, a 60-year-old man, said in this context:
In the past, Mazandaran was important to kings and khans, and also because of the mountains and forests it had, kings who were defeated would come here and hide their treasures and assets here so that they would not fall into the hands of enemies.
2. Stories related to treasure: The geographical and historical-political situation of Mazandaran mentioned above has caused many stories about the existence of treasure in this part of the country to spread (MacKenzie, 1980; Rabino, 2011), and the prevalence of these stories fuels the belief in the existence of treasure in this place. These stories can be categorized into several subgroups: supernatural stories that refer to the role of supernatural elements in the hiding or revealing of treasures; Storytellers who deliberately spread stories related to treasure (such as sellers of treasure-hunting devices who encourage others to buy the device and search for treasure); stories of people getting rich suddenly, accusing those who have become rich suddenly of finding treasure. This last category is important given the conditions in Mazandaran, where land prices have increased significantly due to the climate and tourism in recent years.
3. The existence of texts called “Ganjnameh” (the book of treasure) that have existed for a long time and many fake copies of them are also bought and sold.
4. Movies and series related to treasure hunting that have many fans and their subject matter can lead to the incitement of treasure lovers.
5. The existence of place names related to treasure, as there are many hills and villages in Mazandaran called “Ganj-Afrooz” (treasure brighten), “Zar-Kati” (gold hill), “Talajou” (gold digger) and similar names, and some people believe that they were given such names because of the existence of treasure in this area. The findings of this research show that such beliefs are not only limited to ordinary and poorly educated people; rather, a large number of students and even university professors believe in the existence of abundant treasures in Mazandaran and the possibility of accessing them.
 
3. Conclusion
In response to the main question about the most important reasons for believing in the existence of treasure in Mazandaran, the authors of this study believe that the stories about many people becoming rich overnight in Mazandaran are the main reason for this belief. This situation is exactly consistent with Foster’s (1964) views on storytelling for treasure in places with a stagnant economy. The economic situation of Iran, especially in recent years, has made it difficult for individuals to move and grow economically through legal means and through effort and perseverance. Therefore, any kind of economic growth of individuals is seen by others as using illegal means, and in this context, treasure hunting is one of the first ideas that comes to people’s minds. The findings of this study showed that the sharp increase in land prices in Mazandaran in recent decades, which caused their owners to suddenly become rich by selling them, along with the encroachment on natural resource lands and their illegal sale by some other Mazandaranis, led to the formation of a class of wealthy Mazandaranis. Putting this point next to the findings of the study, especially the section related to the storytelling about treasure-hunting of people who became rich overnight, shows that many of these stories were either made about those who suddenly became rich by selling land legally or illegally in this province, or by the people themselves who became rich by selling land illegally, but do not want others to know about the method of their illegal wealth. The prevalence of these stories leads to encouraging other people to dig illegally. This is consistent with the findings of Arvand (2012) and Ghani Kaleloo (2009), who focused on the economic aspects of drilling.
This situation seems likely to continue, both due to Iran’s stagnant and sick economy, where the means of earning income and becoming rich are generally illegal (and in Mazandaran, this mostly occurs through the sale of natural resource lands or other people’s land) and due to the high demand for property and land in Mazandaran, following the critical water and environmental conditions, neither of which have a clear prospect of resolving.