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.CAIS NEWS© ARCHAEOLOGICAL & CULTURAL NEWS OF THE IRANIAN WORLD |
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Underwater Archaeology Centre to be Established in the Persian Gulf
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19 December 2006 |
LONDON,
(CAIS) -- Based on initial agreements between
Iran’s Cultural Heritage and Tourism Organization (ICHTO) and South Pars Oil
Company, a centre for underwater archaeology will be established in the Persian
Gulf as the first attempt to recover the Partho-Sassanid shipwreck discovered
last September at a depth of 70 meters near the port of Siraf.
“According
to articles 9, 10 and 11 of the memorandum of understanding signed between ICHTO
and South Pars Oil Company, the Company has accepted to take charge of the
establishment of a research centre for underwater archaeological excavations in
the Persian Gulf. Based on this agreement, recovering the discovered
Partho-Sassanid shipwreck will be the first priority of this centre,” said
Hossein Tofighian, director of ICHTO’s Underwater Archaeology Research Centre.
The
recent discovery of the remains of an ancient merchant ship and its cargo,
believed to have belonged to either the Parthian (248 BCE-224 CE) or Sassanid
(224-651 CE) dynasties, in the Persian Gulf attracted the attention of world
archaeologists and many expressed their willingness to cooperate in its recovery
process, which is an absolutely challenging task.
During
his recent trip to Greece last month by director of ICHTO’s Archaeology
Research Centre, invited Greek archaeologists specialized in underwater
excavations to cooperate in this project after he paid a visit to their
underwater archaeology equipments and found them appropriate for this project.
According to Tofighian, salvation of the shipwreck will start once the Greek
archaeologists arrive to Iran.
The discovery of the Partho-Sassanid shipwreck and its cargo was made accidentally by the local fishermen. Initial studies were then carried out for the first time by Darya-Kav-e Jonub Company (Southern Sea Investigation Co.) on behalf of ICHTO under the supervision of experts from the Department of Underwater Archaeology of Iran’s Archaeology Research Centre. A short documentary was also made from this ship which revealed that the ship’s cargo contains big amphora-like jars, which were in use only during the Parthian and Sassanid dynastic periods.
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Extracted From/Source: Cultural Heritage News Agency (CHN) 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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