TEHRAN -- After about 70 years, the metal statue of Ferdowsi is undergoing restoration at the University of Tehran.

A gift from the Parsee and Zoroastrian communities of India, the statue was erected at Ferdowsi Square on October 1, 1945.
In 1959, the statue was replaced with a marble 3m high statue of Ferdowsi which was made by veteran artist Abolhassan Seddiqi.
The metal statue was relocated to the campus of the Faculty of Literature and Humanities of the University of Tehran.
The University of Tehran began the project to refurbish the statue last Wednesday.
In the first stage of the process lasting one week, the crust on the sculpture that has formed over the years will be removed, University of Tehran official Reza Qasemi told MNA.