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.CAIS NEWS© ARCHAEOLOGICAL & CULTURAL NEWS OF THE IRANIAN WORLD |
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Excavations Prove Ecbatan's Flood by Alexander
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11 December 2006 |
LONDON, (CAIS) -- An Iranian archaeologist has claimed that he found evidence supporting claims that the Alexander of Macedon had flooded the ancient city of Ecbatana (Hegmataneh or modern day Hamedan), as a means of breaking the city’s defences, reported by the Persian service of ISNA.
"According to the legend, after Alexander of Macedon failed to capture of
the city of Hegmataneh, he sent a map of the city to the Aristotle seeking his
advice on how to overrun the city. Aristotle advised Alexander to build a dam
six kilometres from the city and then, after a year, break the dam and channel
the water toward the city. In this way the city can be captured", said
Mehdi Aqakhani.
Aqakhani pointed out that the claim is supported by the presence of layers of
sand in the northern section of Hegmataneh hills. A thick sedimentary layer was
discovered during the 15th round of excavations in Hegmataneh hills which serves
as evidence that the city was indeed flooded before being captured.
The historic Hegmataneh or Ecbatana hill is located in Hamedan and covers an area of 30 hectares. Hamedan, known as Hegmataneh in historic texts, was the capital of the first Iranian dynastic Empire, the Medes. It later became one of the main seats of their successors, the Achaemenid dynasty (550-330 BCE), though Persepolis near Shiraz was considered the centre of the throne, but Ecbatana considered a strategic place, which kept its' importance even during the Parthian (248 BCE-224 CE) and Sassanid (224–651 CE) dynastic empires.
According to historical accounts, it was in Ecbatana that Alexander's companion, Hephaestion, fell sick and died. It is claimed that the Stone Lion of Hamedan have been erected by Alexander (the Great), upon the death of his male-lover.
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Extracted From/Source: Iran Daily Please
note
the above-news is NOT a "copy & paste" version from
the mentioned-source. The news/article above has been modified with
the following interventions by CAIS: Spelling corrections;
-Rectification and correction of the historical facts and data; -
Providing additional historical information within the text; -Removing any
unnecessary, irrelevant & repetitive information. All these measures have been taken in order to ensure that the published news provided by CAIS is coherent, transparent, accurate and suitable for academics and cultural enthusiasts who visit the CAIS website.
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"History is the Light on the Path to Future" |
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Encyclopaedia Iranica
The British Institute of Persian Studies "Persepolis Reconstructed"
The British Museum
The Royal Asiatic Society
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