Iranian singer Aref and pianist Anoushirvan Rohani perform during a benefit concert in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, last month.
http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/meast/03/25/iran.encyclopedia.ap/index.html

www.IranDokht.com

2007-03-26

Here's Encyclopedia Iranica
• Project requires another decade
• Iranian government opposes it; U.S. backs it
• Iran scholar Ehsan Yarshater began project 32 years ago
• Each volume costs $1 million to produce

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) -- The Christian concepts of heaven and hell originate in Iran. The Jewish holy Talmud is littered with Iranian words and ideas. And some Iranians cherish the Israeli city of Haifa as a sacred place.

These are among the fascinating nuggets in the Encyclopedia Iranica, a sprawling project under way since 1973 that seeks to distill 5,000 years of Iranian history, geography and life into 45 blue-bound volumes proclaiming Iran's greatness.

"Today more than at any other time we need to keep our Iranian culture alive," Iranica's director Ehsan Yarshater told an audience of 350 Iranians at a fundraiser in Dubai last month. The glitzy dinner, concert and auction raised $100,000 for a project that will take a total of $20 million -- and another decade or so -- to finish.

The Iranian government bitterly opposes the encyclopedia, and the U.S. government backs it. More than half of the encyclopedia's budget comes from the U.S. National Endowment for the Humanities, which has funded it as a project of major cultural significance since 1979 -- the same year Iranian students occupied the U.S. embassy in Tehran.

"Once completed it will be a magnificent gift to our children and the generations to come," said Yarshater, an Iran scholar at Columbia University in New York.

The encyclopedia is Yarshater's life work. Now a frail 86 years old, he suffers from Parkinson's disease. He started the encyclopedia 32 years ago, just after leaving Iran. The project threatens to outlast him. Another Columbia Iranologist, Ahmad Ashraf, will take over leadership of the project if Yarshater dies before completing it.

Only 13 volumes of the English-language encyclopedia have yet been published, up to the letter G. It's been so slow that managers have abandoned the one-letter-at-a-time approach and are soliciting all remaining articles at once.

Each volume costs $1 million to produce, said Mark Houshmand, who heads the Encyclopedia's Dubai support group. Dubai, with around 300,000 resident Iranians, has a large expatriate community supporting the project, as does Los Angeles, New York, Geneva, London, Toronto and Miami.

Individual volumes can be ordered from Iranica's Web site for $250-$350 each, or the first 12 for $3,450. When complete, it'll take more shelf space even than the 29-volume Encyclopedia Britannica.

Some 2,500 years ago, Persia's empire stretched from Libya to China and included Turkey and northern India. The Persian dominion revived again after the 11th century, spreading from Turkey to Bangladesh and dominating central Asia until the penetration of Western civilization into Asia in the mid-1800s.

Thus, encyclopedia entries cover Persian aspects of places far outside today's borders, including Central Asia, India, North Africa, Greece and Albania.

Most of the work is being done outside Iran too, because the Iranian government opposes the project. Scholars inside the country have faced harassment, the managers say. The project is headquartered at Columbia.

Problem: Yarshater is Bahai
Most of the Iranian opprobrium stems from Yarshater's belonging to the Bahai faith, Houshmand said.

"He's not welcome in Iran. They don't appreciate the work he's doing. They don't want him to get any credit," Houshmand said. "All this is because of his religion. It should be irrelevant. But unfortunately, with today's Iranian government, these things are very relevant."

Bahais have been vigorously persecuted by current and past Iranian regimes. In 1868, several Bahais were exiled to Palestine, now Israel, where they built shrines in Haifa, which they now consider a holy city, the encyclopedia says.

Entries like that, documenting the Islamic Republic's connections to Israel and its pre-Islamic past, are deemed contrary to Iran's 1979 Islamic revolution by its current government.

Concepts such as the survival of a person's soul after death, the Day of Judgment, heaven and hell, and holy angels all derive from Iran's surviving Zoroastrian faith, a 3,000-year-old religion that predates Islam and Christianity, the encyclopedia says. Iran's hard-liners also frown on the Zoroastrian beliefs.

In the fundraiser audience were U.S. and Swiss diplomats and some of Iran's biggest pre-revolutionary pop stars, including singers Mahasti and Aref, both of whom flew from homes in Los Angeles. Iran's most famous pianist, Los Angeles-based Anoushirvan Rohani, played his melancholy songs until the wee hours.

"I couldn't care less about what my regime's stance is toward the United States," said Sara Masinaei, 24, a Dubai resident who emigrated from Tehran with her family at the age of eight. "What's important to me is Iran's history, language and traditions. I want my kids and their kids to benefit from what we're supporting today."

Abbas Bolurfrushan said exiles worry about losing touch with Iran and its Farsi language. The books ought to tug them back into the fold until Iran's regime mellows enough to allow them to visit more often, he said.

But Bolurfrushan, who heads the Dubai-based Iranian Business Council, said he was chiefly concerned with practical issues such as U.N. sanctions, which hamper his own trade with Iran.

"I'm fed up with the glorious past," Bolurfrushan said. "What have we got today? The Iranians have to bring themselves out of the past and devote themselves to building up the present."

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press.

LONDON, (CAIS) -- Archaeological studies show that a Sasanian city is being submerged in the reservoir of the Salman-e Farsi Dam, which is currently being filled in Fars Province, southern Iran.

“There were plans to excavate a number of Sasanian tappehs and other ancient sites in this area, but Islamic Republic's officials have begun filling the dam without informing the Cultural Heritage, Tourism, and Handicrafts Organization (CHTHO),” the director of the Archaeological Research Centre of Iran (ARCI) told the Persian service of CHN on Wednesday.

“Talks about the excavations were held in summer 2006, and it was decided that the Fars Regional Water Company would finance the excavations and the studies on the reservoir,” Mohammad-Hassan Fazeli Nashli added.

An ARCI archaeological team is currently surveying ancient sites in the region and the studies show that a Sasanian city is being submerged by the reservoir, he explained.

“The dam is being filled without the CHTHO’s permission, and the process should be stopped as soon as possible,” Fazeli Nashli noted.

Construction of the dam was started over a decade ago, but the CHTHO officials of the time did not object to the project.

“If the former officials did not do their jobs correctly, it is not related to today’s responsibilities. It is our duty to protect cultural heritage, and Energy Ministry officials should also have such an attitude,” Fazeli Nashli said.

Fars Province is home to many significant sites of the Sasanian Empire and this city, which consists of 21 sites, is very important for archaeological studies.

In addition, 42 sites from the Elamite, Achaemenid, Parthian, Sasanian, and post-Sasanian eras will be flooded by the Mullah Sadra Dam’s reservoir, which engineers have been filling since May. The Marvast Dam is also under construction in the region.

The Sivand Dam, which will flood a large section of the Bolaghi Valley in Fars Province, is the most controversial case. The region has over 130 archaeological sites dating from prehistoric periods to the early post-Sasanian era.

The Sivand Dam’s reservoir was scheduled to be filled in early December, but the Bolaghi Valley has been given a reprieve to give experts more time to conduct archaeological excavations and research, and the filling of the dam has been postponed until September.

 http://www.cais-soas.com/News/2007/April2007/04-04.htm

·  Many ancient remains are close to nuclear plants
·  Archaeologists anxious to avoid repeat of Iraq chaos

LONDON, (CAIS) -- In his quiet office at the British Museum, among the portraits of long-dead explorers and copies of 3,000-year-old inscriptions, one of the greatest experts on the archaeology of the Middle East has a series of maps of Iranian nuclear installations spread out across his desk.

John Curtis's maps fill him with foreboding: because they show how many of Iran's nuclear plants are perilously close to ancient cultural sites.

Natanz, home to a uranium enrichment plant, is renowned for its exquisite ceramics; Isfahan, home to a uranium conversion plant, is also a Unesco world heritage site and was regarded in the 16th century as the most beautiful city on earth.

Other nuclear installations lie close to Shiraz, dubbed "the city of roses and nightingales", famous for the tombs of medieval poets; Persepolis, the great palace of King Darius, whose ruins are still magnificent; and the 6th century BC tomb of Cyrus the Great, the Persian ruler who was said to have been buried in a coffin of gold.

Four years ago Dr Curtis was warning that war in Iraq would be a disaster for some of the oldest and most important sites in the world. He has since seen his worst fears confirmed: the site of ancient Babylon became an American military base; thousands of objects are missing from the national museum at Baghdad; and looted artefacts have been illicitly excavated and smuggled out of the country.

Now Dr Curtis dreads seeing history repeated, this time through the escalating threat from the United States against Iran. "Any kind of military activity whatever in Iran, whether aerial bombing or land invasion, would inevitably have the gravest consequences, not only for its people but for its cultural heritage - which should be a matter of concern not just to Iranians but to the whole world," he said.

"The main nuclear bases would seem the most likely targets - which would directly threaten two major sites, Isfahan and Natanz." The medieval splendour of those cities, at the height of the power of Islamic Persia from the 13th to the 17th centuries, was built on a cultural history which was already thousands of years old. The history of cities, of writing, of engineering and astronomy began in the ancient centres of Iran and Iraq.

"The archaeology is so rich there is almost nowhere that you could say is devoid of interest," Dr Curtis said. "But certainly a list must be compiled of the sites which need the most consideration."

Unlike the looted and still shuttered national museum in Baghdad, in Iran the risk is considered less for the national museum in Tehran than for hundreds of major sites with standing buildings and ruins, and thousands of known but unexcavated sites. Some of the structures are in stone, but most are in baked brick with elaborate tile decorations, a building type particularly vulnerable to blast damage.

Apart from Isfahan and Natanz, other potentially vulnerable sites cover 3,000 years of the world's history: a stepped stone tomb at Pasargadae, within 50 miles of one of the nuclear sites once held the body of Cyrus the Great, the king who enormously expanded the Persian empire and conquered mighty Babylon in 539 BC. And the ruins of the great city and palace at Persepolis are among the most imposing in the Middle East, despite the fact that it was ransacked by Alexander the Great in 330BC, after the Macedonian defeated the armies of the Persian emperor Darius. The destruction of the palace is still regarded as one of the greatest acts of vandalism in history. Alarm is growing over the potential fate of Iran's treasures. Professor Harriet Crawford, of the Institute of Archaeology in London, one of the archaeologists who sounded the alarm before the Iraq war, said yesterday: "An attack on Iran would not only cause thousands more avoidable deaths, but would also risk inflicting untold damage on its heritage, comparable with that seen in Iraq."

Precious stones

Persepolis

The magnificent palace of Darius, the centrepiece of which is the Hall of 100 Columns, above, was destroyed by Alexander the Great but the ruins, including some standing columns, are still imposing. It lies within 50 miles of the Ardakan and Fasa uranium processing plants.

Isfahan

An ancient site in a fertile river valley, internationally renowned from the 16th century - "Isfahan is half the world" - as the new capital of Shah Abbas I. It is adorned with magnificent mosques, palaces, the second largest square in the world (originally laid out as a polo ground), gardens, fountains and bridges, including a 33-arch bridge dating from 1602. A World Heritage Site, the historic centre is only a few miles from the Isfahan uranium conversion plant

Famous for its 13th and 14th century mosques and shrines, now mostly stripped of their spectacular lustre tiles, which are in museums across the world. Fragile baked-brick buildings; very close to the Natanz uranium enrichment plant

Tomb of Cyrus the Great

A well-preserved stone tomb on a stepped platform. According to the Greek historian Arrian, the king's body lay in a golden coffin under an inscription reading "Mortal! I am Cyrus, son of Cambyses, who founded the Persian empire, and was King of Asia. Grudge me not then my monument." It is situated at Pasargadae, close to Persepolis.

 http://www.cais-soas.com/News/2007/March2007/06-03.htm

læs også fra sammen kilde (rapport fra sidste månden):

Not Surprisingly, Another Conflicting Reports On Damage to Persepolis, Authority vs Exports

http://www.cais-soas.com/News/2007/March2007/10-03.htm

$3M. Budget Requested for Iran’s Archaeological Salvation Projects

http://www.cais-soas.com/News/2007/March2007/20-03-three.htm

Islamic Regime's Salman-e Farsi Dam Began Devouring Iranian Heritage

http://www.cais-soas.com/News/2007/March2007/19-03-islamic.htm

LONDON, (CAIS) -- Didehgan Dam which was constructed some 2500 years ago during the Achaemenid dynastic era (550-330 BCE) to the north of the world heritage site of Pasargadae in Iran’s Fars province in order to prevent seasonal flooding in the region has been demolished as a result of removing soil in the region by bulldozers.

Announcing this news, Mohammad Jafar Malekzadeh, secretary of the high commission for dam construction of Fars Regional Water Organization, told Persian service of CHN: “A very high technique was implemented in construction of Didehgān Dam which has made it unique in the world. The core of this Achaemenid dam was constructed by soil and it was covered with stone - something which has not been seen elsewhere. However, the activities of bulldozers of a private company in the vicinity of this historic dam have caused some serious damages to parts of Didehgan.”

Didehgan was recently discovered during archaeological excavations in the region. Although the existence of a historic dam belonging to the Achaemenid dynastic era in Didehgan area had previously been mentioned in some archaeological documents including the researches conducted by an American archaeologist in the northern parts of Pasargadae world heritage site, since it was not introduced properly, the search for such a dam was not taken seriously.

Regarding the usage of this dyke-like Dam, Malekzadeh explained: “Considering that there are not much agricultural lands in the region, it seems that most possibly the main aim behind construction of this dam was to bring the flooding in the region under control and to have a water reservoir.”

By destruction of this dam, some valuable archaeological evidence giving clues to the technique practiced for dam construction during the ancient times have been demolished; however, Malekzadeh still believes that even the remaining parts would put some important information in the hands of archaeologists in this regard.

“Some massive stones, 1x1 meters in size, were used for construction of the Dam. However, archaeologists are still uncertain about the origin of these stones,” added Malekzadeh.

According to Malekzadeh, some holes can be seen on parts of the stones which most probably were used for coiling up the logs to prevent penetration of water. Due to recent activities of bulldozers, some parts of the dam have been completely demolished and the stones used in its construction have been broken down into pieces. This is while experts believe such activities in this area were absolutely unnecessary.

In an attempt to prevent flooding in the region, a number of dams were constructed in Fars province, capital of Achaemenid dynastic era (550-330 BCE), during the reign of Achaemenid emperors. Examples of such dams can be seen in Marvdasht where the Great Dam of Darius was constructed.

http://www.cais-soas.com/News/2007/February2007/24-02.htm

LONDON, (CAIS) -- As the time to inaugurate Alborz Dam in the Iranian northern province of Mazandaran is getting closer, a number of Iranian cultural heritage experts have voiced their concern regarding the possible consequences of dam inauguration to the historic Lafurak cemetery, which they believe enfolds enormous invaluable information about the civilization that populated northern Iran during the Iron Age.

While archaeological excavations in this historic cemetery have remained incomplete, the Islamic Republic dam authorities as usual have shown no interest in preserving pre-Islamic Iranian heritage, and the importance of this historic site and are preparing the dam to be inaugurated as previously planned.

“First season of archaeological excavations in this ancient cemetery revealed that the cemetery dates back to some 3000 years ago. Archaeologists also succeeded in identifying three unique burial methods in this cemetery belonging to the Iron Age (1500 to 500 BCE). However, excavations in the area were left incomplete by archaeologists to resume their work later. For this reason, we have requested Mazandaran Regional Water Organization to give us another chance to open up a new excavation season in the region. However, the Organization has not announced its agreement yet,” said Mehdi Abedini, head of excavation team in Lafurak historic cemetery to Persian service of CHN.

According to this archaeologist, Islamic Republic’s Regional Water Organization was expected to pay for excavations in Lafurak cemetery based on previous agreements reached with the Iranian cultural heritage organization; however, the provincial dam authorities have thus not so-surprisingly failed to honour their obligation and all the expenses have been paid by Iran’s Archaeology Research Centre.

Abedini also expressed his regret that a great deal of invaluable information about Iron Age in ancient Iran would be lost due to submerging of Lafurak historic cemetery and stressed the necessity to resume excavations behind the dam in the shortest time.

Archaeological studies behind Alborz Dam indicate that in addition to Lafurak cemetery, five other ancient cemeteries alongside 9 historic villages and a number of historic mausoleums will be submerged by inundation of the dam. 

Located near Savādkūh in the Iranian northern province of Mazandaran, Lafurak is a unique cemetery belonging to the Iron Age. Previous excavation in the area resulted in unearthing graves covered with a layer of special kind of earthenware, containing skeletons with hyperdolichocephalic skulls (long and narrow head with a cephalic index of less than 70), which were unique in this part of the country. Archaeologists have also found gold and silver earrings in this cemetery.

In the recent years large numbers of historic sites have fallen victim to developing projects such as dam construction in Iran. The infamous Sivand Dam in Bolaghi Valley, Fars province can be taken as the most sensational example which has evoked strong objections by the national and the international communities. In 2003, the United Nations issued an appeal for world archaeologists to rush to Bolaghi Valley to unearth and record the historical remains before the dam’s reservoir is filled.

The pre-Islamic sites behind Karun-3 Dam in Khuzestan province and Mullah Sadra Dam in Fars are among many ancient suites in the Islamic Republic target list waiting to be destroyed.

 http://www.cais-soas.com/News/2007/February2007/12-02.htm

LONDON, (CAIS) -- For the second time in the past few weeks, the Kermanshah Cultural Heritage and Tourism Department has filed a legal complaint against the provincial Telecommunication Organization for its activities in the vicinity of Bistun which have intruded the cultural landscape of this world heritage site.

Despite previous objections raised by the provincial CHTO regarding this project, the Telecommunication Organization is now claiming that it obtained permission from the Islamic Republic Governor Office of the province to continue its activities in the vicinity of Bistun world heritage site. 

Two weeks ago, the diggings to lay cables in Bistun plain resulted in destruction of some historical monuments dating back to the Sasanian (224-651 CE) and Ilkhanid (1256-1336) dynastic periods near the historic Khosrow Bridge.

The Islamic Republic’ Telecommunication Organization rejects to take responsibility for the damages caused and puts the blame on the inhabitants of the nearby Chambatān Soflā village and its council. On the other hand, in an interview with CHN, Hosseini, member of Chabatan village council, said that the villagers started the diggings in Bistun plain by the order of the Telecommunication Organization and they did not install cable poles in the region.

According to Asadollah Biranvand, director of the KCHTO, the case will be taken to the court for further investigations to find out who was in charge of diggings in Bistun plain. “We have presented the court with a full list of the names of those who had a role in this project,” said Biranvand to Persian service of CHN.

Biranvand further said, since the KCHTO is the only legal body that can issue permission for diggings and other construction activities in the province’s historic sites, the provincial governor office has no right in giving such permissions.

 http://www.cais-soas.com/News/2007/February2007/06-02-hostility.htm

                     World Registration of Ferdowsi Tomb in Danger

Dec 28, 2006

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