Discovery of a Giant Achaemenid Building in Bolaghi Gorge

Tehran, 10 April 2006 (CHN) -- Archaeological excavations in area no. 73 of Bolaghi Gorge historical site with the aim of finding cultural evidence from the fourth millennium BC led to the discovery of the remains of a big construction belonging to the Achaemenid era.
“Prior to this discovery, the remains of an Achaemenid architectural style was found by Iranian-Italian joint team in area no. 73 of Bolaghi Gorge, but the discovery of the remains of clay ovens belonging to the fourth millennium BC headed us to this historical site to find more evidence. Geophysical studies in this area resulted in unearthing a huge building. Three big trenches have been dug for identifying this building. Archaeological excavations indicate that this building with stone walls dates back to the Achaemenid era,” said Mojgan Seyedein, Iranian head of Iranian-German joint excavation team.
Rubble stones were used in the construction of the walls of this building. “The remains of two broken stone dishes were also discovered which are somehow similar to the present bowls. However, since we have not reached to pure soil yet, we can not determine the exact characteristics such as the size of the walls of this construction,” added Seyedein.
The remains of an Achaemenid village with 30 rural houses had already been discovered in area no. 73 of Bolaghi Gorge with a cemetery next to it. Getting closer to the time of the Sivand Dam flooding, archeological excavations in Bolaghi Gorge have been speeded up, which resulted in some considerable findings so far.
The 18-kilometer Bolaghi Gorge is located 9 kilometers from the world heritage site of Pasargadae in Fars province. Some experts believe that the site has been the location of the major ancient road of Iran, King’s Road, built by the order of Darius, the Achaemenid king. Bolaghi Gorge will sure drown after the inundation of Sivand Dam. The salvation project in Bolaghi Gorge started with the participation of 8 international and several domestic archaeological teams more than a year ago to save the archaeological relics buried in this ancient site as much as possible.