The studies indicate that its residents had extensive trade ties with North-Eastern and Eastern territories of modern Iran (modern countries of Afghanistan , Pakistan , Transoxiana ) as well as the Persian Gulf region 5,000 years ago, the director of the team of archeologists studying the site said.

Professor Yusef Majidzadeh added that additional studies have shown that the region, especially the ancient city of Kenar-Sandal in the Halil Rud region, was the commercial link between the abovementioned regions in ancient times.

“Each seal bears various patterns as well as commercial trademarks. The seal for each country was different than the other. That is, it indicates which region the businessmen had commercial ties with. The collection includes various seals for each country they had ties with.”

The inhabitants of ancient Jiroft packaged goods inside earthenware vessels and/or jugs and then covered the lid with mud and affixed the special seals, according to Iranian archaeologists.

The team began archaeological excavations in the region on January 1, 2006 to prove Iran ’s right to seek the return of artifacts smuggled from Kenar-Sandal.

Jiroft came into the spotlight nearly four years ago when reports of extensive illegal excavations and plundering of the priceless historical items of the area by local people surfaced.

Since 2002, two excavation seasons have been carried out at the Jiroft site under the supervision of Majidzadeh, leading to the discovery of a ziggurat (picture above) made of more than four million mud-bricks dating back to about 2,300 BC.

Jiroft, located in Kerman Province , is one of the richest historical areas in the world, with ruins and artifacts dating back to the third millennium BC. Over 100 historical sites are located along the approximately 400 kilometers of the Halil Rud riverbank.

Many Iranian and foreign experts see the findings in Jiroft as signs of a civilization as great as Sumer and ancient Mesopotamia . Majidzadeh believes that Jiroft is the ancient city of Aratta , which was described as a great civilization in a Sumerian clay inscription.