“An
archaeological team tasked with saving ancient sites at
the reservoir site discovered the fire temple, which had
never been referred to in any document before,” team
director Hassan Rezvani said.
“Covering
an area of about 283 square meters, the fire temple seems
have been in use until the Sassanid era. The foundations
of the monument have been strengthened with stone and
mortar and the floor has been covered with numerous blocks
made of plaster. The fire temple has a collection of
unique plasterworks. The pillars of the five censers have
been ornamented with stuccos featuring lotus motifs. The
censers are located beside the circumambulation area,”
he explained.
“The
floor of the fire temple was restored by the dynasties
that came to power after the Parthians. Due to some
structures in the fire temple, the archaeologists surmise
that the monument had been used as a mosque (after the
advent of Islam in Iran). They also infer numerous Islamic
burials near the fire temple.
“The
fire temple has a structure adjacent to the northern part,
which the archaeologists believe was a place for vows. The
monument also has some structures believed to date back to
the Achaemenid era.”
Archaeologists
believe that the flowing Shian fountainhead encouraged the
first settlements in the region in about 2400 BC. They
have identified a great number of historic and ancient
sites in the region from the Parthian to the Islamic eras.
Shian
Dam is scheduled to come on stream in 2007. A number of
other dams, all in advanced stages of construction, have
been identified as threatening Iran’s ancient sites in
several provinces including Fars in the south, Gilan in
the north, Khuzestan in the southwest, and East Azarbaijan
in the northwest.
