LONDON,
(CAIS) -- The archaeologists working at the Sasanian
city of Gur have unearthed bas-reliefs that they believe
depict four Sasanian princes in the Menarshahr region of
the ancient site, the Persian service of CHN reported on
Monday.
Located
10 kilometers from Firuzabad in Fars Province, the
circle-shaped city of Gur was the first capital of the Sasanians,
which was established during the reign of the founder of
the Sasanian dynasty, Emperor Ardashir I (224-241 CE). Very few
studies have been carried out on the city, which is one of
the five most important Sasanian cities. It covers an area
of 300 hectares.
“These
unique bas-reliefs, which are colorful, are carved on one
of the walls of a newly discovered palace at the site.
This is the first time such bas-reliefs have been
discovered from the Sasanian era,” the head of the
archaeological team said.
“At
the present time, only the heads of the princes have been
unearthed, and we know nothing about their clothing or
other accessories,” Leili Niakan added.
Niakan
believes that there may be more bas-reliefs of Sasanian
princes at the site due to the direction the bas-relief
heads are pointed toward. The team is continuing the
excavation of the site to unearth the entire wall and its
ornamentation.
The
palace was decorated with black and white stones and its
columns closely resemble those of Persepolis.
Last
week, the team unearthed a gate of a governmental site at
Gur which is remarkably similar to the gates of
Persepolis. However, the gate has no bas-relief.
Gur
had four main gates: the Mehr Gate in the east, the Bahram
Gate in the west, the Hormoz Gate in the north, and the
Ardashir Gate in the south.
The
excavations are being carried out in order to save the
site, which is threatened by farmers who are cultivating
the lands beneath which most of the ancient city lies
buried.
Last
year, experts warned cultural heritage officials of the
damage being done to the ruins of Gur. They said that over
80 percent of the city, which contains significant
artifacts from the Sasanian era (226–651 CE), is in
danger. Over 30 percent of the upper level of the city has
been flattened and its walls have been seriously damaged
by farmers’ activities such as irrigation, plowing, and
leveling the lands over the years.
Part
of the site of the ancient city of Gur has been under
wheat, barley, and corn cultivation for the past 30 years.
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Source: MNA
