Archaeological Site Destroyed in Iran

The Islamic Nazis in Iran are up to their old tricks - business as usual - while the prisons are full of fresh meat (due to recent upheavals that the regime is trying very hard to keep out of the eyes of the world) to torture, rape and kill at the leisure of the Revolutionary Guard. Isn't it ironic that the very things the Iranian people fought to overthrow 30 years ago are now embodied in an "Islamic republic." Here's the article from CAIS: A Large Parthian Site in Khuzestan Province Seriously Damaged & Partly Destroyed Tuesday, 14 July 2009 08:11 During the widening of a road by the Islamic Republic’s controlled Iran’s National Oil Company near the city of Ahwaz, a large historical site dating back to the Parthian dynasty (248 BCE - 224 CE) was seriously damaged and some sections were completely destroyed, as reported by the Persian service of the Friends of Khuzestan’s Friends of Cultural Heritage Society (TARIANA). Apparently the destruction of the site began over a decade ago by the Islamic Republic’s Construction Jihad Foundation. The name and the exact location of the site have been kept secret for security reasons. “Destruction of this important site which its’ name cannot be disclosed for security reasons, began in 1990s by the Jihad Foundation,” said Mojtaba Gahestuni, the director of Tariana. “The ancient site is over 150 hectares and there is evidence of mudbrick walls, large cut stones, stone-constructions, a fire-alter as well as decorated potsherds scattered over the site,” said Gahestuni. He continued “in this site there is a large cemetery which is covered with broken pieces of large red coloured-torpedo shaped earthenware urns, typical of Parthian dynastic art and black-wares dating back to the 1st millennium BCE.” Currently the ancient Iranian site is left unprotected at the mercy of the Oil Company’s bulldozers and smugglers alike. The responsibility of the security of the site lies with the provincial Cultural Heritage, Handicraft and Tourism Organisation (KCHHTO) but no action has been taken yet to protect it. Not so surprisingly, but ironically KCHHTO has been responsible for the destruction of many pre-Islamic Iranian sites in the Khuzestan Province. “KCHHTO is fully aware of the site’s cultural and historical importance, not only have no measures been taken to secure the site, but also no steps were made to register the site on the national heritage list or commission a preliminary archaeological survey to demarcate the boundaries of the site,” said Gahestuni. Registering a site in today’s Iran does not mean anything as many archaeological and historical sites which were registered on the list some since 1930s have been damaged and even totally obliterated and nothing was done to protect them, such as last years destruction of a Partho-Sasanian site in Susa. The Parthian site contains a free-standing stone structure which is believed to be a Parthian Mausoleum. “In the site there is a large cubic-structure made of stone and saruj mortar, which is 2 meters in height, 6 meters wide and has a 2 meter foundation. Primarily we thought the structure was an ābanbār (water storage), but it is more likely to be a mausoleum.” He concluded “if any archaeological researches are to be conducted on the site we will surly find the coinage and written-evidence to obtain more information about the ancient site.”

Inscribed in Stone Game Boards Found in Iran

From CAIS (Circle of Ancient Iranian Studies) - I'll see if I can find more news on this discovery.

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LATEST ARCHAEOLOGICAL & CULTURAL NEWS OF IRAN & THE IRANIAN WORLD

Discovery of 3000-Years old Board-Games and a Compass-Rose in Persian Gulf’s Kharg Island

19 April 2008
LONDON,(CAIS) -- An ancient four-pointed compass-rose showing directions of ‘four cardinal points’ and a number of board-games carved on rocks discovered in the Iranian island of Kharg in the Persian Gulf, reported Persian service of CHN on Saturday.

The discovery was made by Shahram Eslami, a local and a member of Kharg’s Friends of Cultural Heritage. The relics were studied and their ancient origins identified by Dr Reza Moradi Ghiasabadi.

"The engravings are between 2000 and 3000 years old. The first discovered carving is located beside an ancient road which is a four-pointed compass-rose showing directions of four cardinal points within a square-shape with rounded angles setting, 50x50cm in diameters. Some sections of the compass-rose have been damaged, apparently as the result of a cracks in the rock," said Ghiasabadi.

He added, "the compass-rose's lines have been placed in a position to determine the cardinal points, which have only two degrees of error based on the Global Positioning System (GPS)".

“Thos is a unique discovery and a great deal of efforts and resources should be made available to safeguard the relic. Also we must not remove it from its original place," according to Ghiasabadi

The remaining carvings which are board-games were discovered in the northwest of the island. The board-games are in a mixture of circular and oblong shape settings, in various diameters, some 4cm and some in 10cm in circumference (see the picture). All these carvings engraved over the rocky-ground’s flat surfaces. The latter ones are located on the hinterland at the top of the cliff overlooking the waters of the Persian Gulf.

These game-boards have been carved on the rocks in various settings and Ghiasabadi have identified seven of them. Some of them could be the proto-type for backgammon.

The Persian Gulf's Iranian island of Kharg is situated at about 30 km northwest of Bandar-e Rig and 52 km northwest of Bushehr. It is the larger and more southerly of two islands (the other being Khargu). Kharg (also Khark) is about 8 km long and, at its widest point, 4 km across. The interior is hilly, terminating in cliffs at the northern and southern ends of the island.

Archaeologists have always believed the oldest settlement on the island dates back to Parthian dynastic era (248 BCE-224 CE), but as the result of a discovery in November 2007 history of the island was re-written, as the archaeologists have discovered an inscription (LINK) executed in Old-Persian cuneiform, dated to the Achaemenid dynasty (550-330 BCE). Since its discovery, the rock-inscription has been left unprotected in its original place at the mercy of looters, vandals, and harsh weather.

Original News bulletin published in Persian by CHN, and translated and prepared by CAIS.

12th Asian Women's Chess Championship

From Asian Chess Federation Website

(Sheikh Sultan Bin Khalifah Al-Nehyan, President of A.C.F. - could he possibly be related to former World Chess Champion Alexander Khalifman??? - well, just wondering, take off the headdress and dye his hair and beard blonde...)

Iran Chess Federation will organize 12th Asian Women Championship in Tehran, Iran from 2 -12 September 2007. Total prize of tournament will be 10000$ for 6 top players and 3 players will qualify for world women championship. Tournament will organize in 9 round Swiss System tournament and time control is 90 Min for 40 Move and 30 Min. for finish the game with 30 sec. increment for every move in the second time control.
Download the Regulation, Invitation and Registration form.

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10 countries announce readiness to take part in Asian Women Chess Tournament
Semnan, Aug 18, IRNA [Islamic Repubic News Agency]

Iran-Chess-Women
Ten countries have so far announced readiness to take part in Asian Women Chess Championships, due to be held in Tehran from September 2-11.

Head of the Chess Federation's Competitions Committee Hamid-Reza Pour-Shahmari told IRNA on Saturday that China, Bangladesh, Vietnam and India are among the participating contenders and that the number of participants including some from Asia, are to increase.

Pour-Shahmari said 40 chess players are to take part in the Swiss-method contests. ********************************************************************************************

Hmmmm, 10 countries to participate (so far), but only four were listed - five - if Iran is included in the list.

Will the foreign female players have to wear head scarves, even if this insults their religious beliefs or personal political beliefs?

Interesting that the prize fund is in the Great Satan's U.S. dollars...guess there's still some things we're good for, heh?