Researchers from the Copenhagen Museum in Denmark
have traveled to the coasts of the Caspian Sea, northern Iran, in search
of clues of relationships between Iranians and Vikings.
A few years ago, a researcher from the
Copenhagen Museum, Nadia Haupt, discovered more than one
thousand coins and relics that did not belong to the
Danish or other Scandinavian cultures, and therefore set
to find out more about the historical roots of the Danish
civilization.
The ancient items that took the
attention of experts included more than one hundred
thousand coins that are not part of the Danish history,
Viking shipwrecks that Haupt believes their style of
construction and the kind of trade they used to undertake
differentiate them from those of their ancestors, clothes
and accessories used today in some Scandinavian cities and
villages, and red and blue colors included in the clothes
of the residents under study.
The findings prompted archeologists and
anthropology enthusiasts to find out more about their
ancestral roots, and where these items have originally
come from. The first hypothesis that these items
originated from southwestern Europe such as Spain was
overruled with more studies.
The next hypothesis focused on the
northeastern countries in Europe, or more specifically
Russia. Relics found in the excavations of the area have
confirmed the existence of trade relationships between
Denmark and Russia, but Haupt intends to get to the main
roots.
She has followed her leads in Russia and
has now come to the Iranian side of the Caspian Sea,
hoping to prove that Eastern cultures had influenced the
Scandinavian countries, such as Denmark.
Director of the research center of the
Cultural Heritage Department, Mazandaran province, Ali
Mahforouzi, told CHN that Haupt’s field work will
continue for 2 weeks, after which she would go back to
Denmark to hopefully announce the results of her studies
in 3 months.
Mahforouzi believes that further
excavations in European countries may show that old Asian
civilizations, especially Iran, have had a more important
role in the booming of the European cultures.
If her hypothesis is proved, Mahforouzi
said, a great project concerning the relations between the
Iranian and residents of the coastal areas of the Adriatic
Sea will be triggered. According to him, such discoveries
can help attract many scholar-tourists to Iran.
The Cultural Heritage & Tourism
Department in the northern province of Mazandaran has some
plans to prepare the residents in this region for hosting
foreign tourists and has started some archeology classes
and exhibitions of their heritage.
Top
of Page
Relevant
News:
