Discovery of Ancient Figurines and a Statue of Female Musician in Daqyanous - CAIS Archaeological & Cultural News of Iranian World©

LONDON, (CAIS) -- Archaeological excavations in Jiroft led to the discovery of some figurines of men and women and the statue of a torso of an musician woman in the ancient public bathroom of Daqyanous city.

Archaeologists believe that the existence of these figurines indicate the continuation of pre-Islamic art during the Seljuk era.

The city of Daqyanous, located north of the city of Jiroft in Kerman province is the only city dating back to prehistoric times which was registered as a national heritage some 70 years ago. Considering its 40-kilometer area, this city is considered one of the biggest Post-Sasanid cities, although its central part is only 12 kilometers.

“Studying the dress styles depicted on these figurines will result in identifying the dress code of the people in Daqyanous city during the ancient times. The cloths of the men and women are very similar, consisting of trousers and coats. There is also some very beautiful ornamentation on their hats, head-gears and their trousers,” said Hamideh Choobak, head of archaeological excavation team in Daqyanous city.

Considering the discovery of the statue of a torso of an musician woman in Daqyanous historical site, she explained: “Discovery of this statuette indicates the continuation of the Parthian and Sasanid dynastic art during the Seljuk era since some figurines belonging to the Elamite period have also been discovered. Later during the Parthian and Sasanid era it was common to carve images of musician women on silver dishes. Therefore, with the discovery of these figurines we can see the influence of pre-Islamic Iranian art on that of the Seljuk period and that how they were used in the decorations of the buildings during the Seljuk era.”

Jiroft, in southeast of Iran is one of the most ancient centers of Iranian civilization comprised of archaic sites dating back to the third millennium BC up to the post-Sasanid era. There are many historical sites in this area such as the city of Daqyanous near Halil Rud River.

Daqyanous historical city was one of the key areas in Iran through which Iran traded with eastern countries of the region. A lot of ceramic kilns and ancient layers of the prehistoric era up to the post-Sasanid period can be found there. Some dishes engraved with images such as dragons, eagles, animals, temples, and idols and beads that change colour when in contact with water have been discovered in Daqyanous historical site. Marco Polo, the alleged famous Italian explorer, has described Daqyanous historical city as a magnificent city in his itinerary.

Some archaeological excavations have been done by the Cultural Heritage and Tourism Organization of Iran in this historical site but only 2,000 square meters of it have been excavated so far. Archaeologists believe that more than a century is needed to complete the studies there. Fortunately some invaluable artifacts were seized during the illegal excavations by the smugglers. The latest season of excavations has been started since 17th of March and will run to 30th of April to extract more information from this historic site.