Remains of Achaemenid Palace Unearthed in Bolaghi Valley - CAIS Archaeological & Cultural News of Iranian World©

LONDON, (CAIS) -- Following the discovery of the remains of a colossal palace which is believed to date back to the Achaemenid dynastic era (550-330 BC) and is denoted to Darius the Great, by the Iran-French joint archaeological team in Bolaghi Valley in Fars province, archaeological research continued in the area which led to unearthing the remains of the palace.

“Prior to this, the remains of a summer residential palace belonging to the Achaemenid dynastic era was identified in area no. 85. However, archaeological excavations show that this palace was destructed due to the later constructions during the Sasanid and Safavid dynastic periods. Moreover, we were able to find the remains of an estimated 900-square-meter palace which for sure must have belonged to the Achaemenid king of kings and for some unknown reason was destroyed by bulldozers,” said Mohammad Taghi Atayi, the head of Iran-France archaeological team in Bolaghi Valley in the one-day Bolaghi Valley archaeology seminar which was held yesterday in National Museum of Iran with the attendance of heads of Iranian and foreign archaeology teams active in Bolaghi Valley.

Discovery of the base of a pillar and the platform of the palace assured archaeologists that this palace must have belonged to the Achaemenid dynastic era. According to Atayi, archaeologists have succeeded in saving some parts of the palace; however other parts of the palace such as the base of the pillars have been destroyed by bulldozers.

In this one day summit, Rémy Boucharlat, the French head of Iranian-French joint archaeology team in Bolaghi Valley, issued his report on their accomplishments in Bolaghi Valley and the discovery of the Achaemenid palace in this historical site.

Among other participants in this one day seminar were heads of archaeology teams in historical sites of Kalat Qafkhaneh in Shahrud, Pardis Tepe in Varamin, Iron age Sang-Tarashan in Khorram-Abad, Parthian Chehr-Abad salt mine in Zanjan, and Sasanian Bandian Dargaz in Khorasan.

The participants presented their reports on their archaeological findings across Iran. However, the main focus of this seminar was on the discoveries of the Bolaghi Valley area, especially the newly discovered palace of Darius the Great.

Excavations in Bolaghi Valley started almost two years ago with the aim of saving the remains of archaeological evidence before the inundation of the nearby Sivand Dam. Currently, some groups from Italy, France, Germany, Poland, and a large number of Iranian archaeologists are engaged with rescuing opperation.

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Source/Extracted From: CHN