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LONDON, (CAIS) -- Continuation of archaeological excavations in cemetery of the Sasanian city behind Salman-e Farsi Dam, Fars province, led into discovery of a number of graves with different burial methods belonging to post-Achaemenid (333-248 BCE), Sasanian (224-651) and post-Sasanian (651-861 CE) period. Experts believe that this new discovery shows that residency in this city existed during different historical periods and it was not just limited to Sasanian dynastic era.

Announcing this news, Alireza Jafari Zand, head of excavation team behind Salman-e Farsi Dam told Persian service of CHN: “With a little difference the burial methods practiced in this historic site during post-Achaemenid and Sasanian dynastic eras are very similar. However, due to their significant difference, those belonging to early Islamic period are easily distinguishable.”

The discovered post-Achaemenid burials behind Salman-e Farsi Dam resembles to those unearthed in Rahmat Mountain near Persepolis historic site in which the mountain was cut and dug away and the corpse was put inside. The statuettes discovered in this historic cemetery are also very similar to those found in Rahmat Mountain.    

“There are many secrets about burial methods during Sasanian era, however, archaeology team has succeeded in discovering a clay vessel which was engraved with Sasanian-Pahlavi which will be used for chronology,” added Jafari Zand.

According to the head of excavation team behind Salman-e Farsi Dam, the remarkable point about this historic cemetery is that the burials were conducted in two different places and with burying their corpse on heights of the mountain during Sasanian dynastic era, the post-Achaemenid section which was on the foot hill remained intact.         

This large historic cemetery has been several times plundered by illegal diggers which have resulted in destruction of a number of graves.     

Construction of Salman-e Farsi Dam by the Islamic republic started in 1994 - however no serious attempt was made to save the pre-Islamic sites located behind the dam. Following spreading news about the first phase of inundation of the dam which took place on March 2007 without obtaining permission from Iran’s Cultural Heritage and Tourism Organization (ICHTO), cultural heritage experts voiced their objections towards this measure and asked the authorities of the dam and the regime’s Ministry of Energy to postpone filling the reservoir of the dam until archaeological excavations in the Sasanian city behind the dam is completed, in which the request was denied.

The Sasanian city which is located behind Salman-e Farsi Dam is consisted of 21 historical sites and it is considered one of the main residential settlements of Sasanian dynastic era in Fars province. Inundation of Salman-e Farsi Dam would pose a real threat to invaluable historic evidence lying behind the dam.

 

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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