Ancient Cemetery Registered as a National Heritage

Thursday, 12 January 2001

An ancient cemetery known as the “cemetery of gray clay objects” discovered in the compound of the Kaboud Mosque in the northwestern provincial capital city of Tabriz, has been registered as a national heritage.

In excavations conducted by the Cultural Heritage Department of East Azarbaijan Province, remarkable evidences have been found attesting to the existence of life and civilization in the first and second millennium B.C.

The department’s deputy, Saed Hodaei, told IRNA on Tuesday that remnants of the cemetery, which measures 2,480 square meters, have been registered as a national cultural heritage. He said the excavations conducted around the mosque have un-earthed objects dating back to the Iron Age, some 1,250 years B.C. Archaeologists say there is no doubt that the precious ob-jects date back to some 3,000 years ago and believe that with continued excavation the beginnings of life and civilization in the city of Tabriz would also be traced to 3,500 years ago. Objects discovered in the course of excavation belong to different eras covering a span of 300 to 400 years. Graves lie side by side. The way corpses are buried in the graves along with the personal belongings of the dead indicate that they were of those living in different eras.

Some graves contain corpses of couples buried together, a sample of which is now on display at the Azarbaijan museum. Alireza Nowbari, the official in charge of archaeological studies on the cemetery, said that remnants of unearthed objects are to be studied by qualified experts to identify the exact period to which they belong. He said the discovery of more objects in Tabriz will make this city the most ancient in archaeological standing in the country.