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.CAIS NEWS© ARCHAEOLOGICAL & CULTURAL NEWS OF THE IRANIAN WORLD |
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Bolaghi Valley Summit Ended without Achieving Anything
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21 January 2007 |
LONDON,
(CAIS) -- The story of Bolaghi Valley and inundation
of Sivand Dam is still far from over due to refusal of Iran’s Cultural
Heritage and Tourism Organization (ICHTO) to make a formal announcement on the
date of Sivand Dam inauguration. This issue evoked strong opposition from
cultural heritage enthusiasts and NGOs who are concerned with the fate of the
historic site of Bolaghi Valley, demanding Iranian authorities prevent flooding
of the Dam.
The
one-day seminar on latest archeological achievements in Bolaghi Valley was held
on January 20, in Tarbiat Modares University in Tehran with the attendance of
cultural heritage experts, archaeologists, and more than 40 cultural heritage
NGOs.
In
this seminar, ICHTO was expected to present a comprehensive report on
archaeological excavations in Bolaghi Valley and make clear whether the time has
arrived for inundation of Sivand Dam or not. However, due to unanimous
objections raised by those who took part in the seminar regarding inundation of
Sivand Dam, representatives of ICHTO preferred not to make any announcement on
the issue and wrapped up the session without any result.
During
this summit, some prominent archaeologists who were involved in the Bolaghi
Valley archaeological salvation project talked about the importance of this
project, its major achievements and the national and international feedbacks it
received.
According
to Dr Masoud Azarnoush, archaeologist and former director of ICHTO’s
Archaeology Research Centre who was in charge of the first excavations in
Bolaghi Valley, the amount of work which has been done in the past three years
in Bolaghi Valley and the huge achievements in this historic site make this case
unique in the history of Iran’s archaeology.
Sadegh
Malek Shahmirzadi, another archaeologist at the seminar said: “Until some 40
years ago, people did not show much interest toward archaeological sites and the
issue of cultural heritage was somehow unknown but today we are witnessing such
a large gathering with the presence of a large number of experts and NGOs who
show great concern for preserving cultural heritage of Iran.”
Professor
Abbas Alizadeh, archaeologist and former research associate in the Oriental
Institute and the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations of
University of Chicago, said: “I follow the news about Bolaghi Valley both here
in Iran and in the States. The Iranian opposition groups in America are trying
to use the issue of Bolaghi Valley to attain their political objectives.
Therefore, this makes it absolutely important for the Iranian mass media to
present the reality through pictures, films and reports.”
The
majority of those who attended at the seminar categorically protested against
flooding of Sivand Dam, accompanied by placards to show their objections to
inundation of the Dam. This is probably why the Iranian cultural heritage
officials hesitated to make any announcements regarding date of Sivand Dam
inauguration and left the session unfinished.
In
an interview with Persian service of CHN, Hassan Fazeli Nashli, director of
Archaeology Research Centre of ICHTO announced that archaeological excavations
at Bolaghi Valley have come to an end and the Research Centre is not planning to
allocate further budget to this project. “Inundation of Sivand Dam has nothing
to do with the Research Centre and the authorities of ICHTO are in charge of
following the case,” added Fazeli Nashli.
Based
on previous agreements between ICHTO and Islamic Republic’ Ministry of Energy,
inundation of Sivand Dam starts once archaeological excavations in Bolaghi
Valley are announced to have ended. However, the exact date of Dam inauguration
has kept secret.
It
was anticipated that the date would be announced during the summit, but Fazeli
Nashli told CHN that the aim of holding such a seminar was just to announce
latest archaeological achievements in Bolaghi Valley and nothing else.
According
to Fazeli Nashli, archaeologists have also confirmed that no further excavation
is needed at Bolaghi Valley. “Currently archaeologists at Bolaghi Valley are
continuing their excavations in a palace denoted to Darius the Great, though
this area will not be submerged by the inundation of the Dam. However,
archaeological excavations in other historical sites of Bolaghi Valley such as
the unearthed Achaemenid village, the wine production workshop, and other
historical sites belonging to the fourth millennium BCE have been completed,”
he added.
Bolaghi
Valley, located 4 kilometres from the World Heritage Site of Pasargadae in Fars
province, is one of the most important archaeological sites in Iran where a
large number of historical evidence including the remains of a village belonging
to the Achaemenid dynastic era (550-330 BCE), 6000 year-old clay kilns, one of
the palaces of Achaemenid emperor Darius the Great, and numerous other
archaeological relics and architectural structures have been unearthed during
emergency archaeological excavations undertaken by Iranian and international
archaeologists in the past three years. With the flooding of Sivand Dam which
was recently built in Bolaghi Valley, hundreds of historical relics unearthed so
far will be submerged
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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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