TEHRAN -- A team of Iranian and French archaeologists recently began a new phase of excavations in order to completely unearth the Achaemenid palace in the controversial Bolaghi Valley in Fars Province, the Persian service of CHN reported on Sunday.

The palace, which is believed to have belonged to Darius I, was discovered by the team in May 2006 during the archaeological rescue excavations in the Bolaghi Valley, which will be flooded by the Sivand Dam in the near future.

“The site where the castle was discovered was one of the most important residential areas of the Achaemenids in the Bolaghi Valley. A part of the palace was inexplicably destroyed by loaders, and the team only unearthed the corridor and main court of the palace during the previous excavations,” team director Mohammad-Taqi Ataii said.

The corridor was constructed on columns, and four of their bases were discovered during the previous excavation. The column bases, which are identical to those at Persepolis, are made of black and white stone.

The French archaeologists are led by Remy Boucharlat, the director of the French Institute of Iranian Studies.

A number of archaeological teams from Japan, France, Italy, Poland, Germany, and Australia along with Iranian experts worked in the region from 2004 to 2006 to save artifacts and glean information from the 130 ancient sites of the Bolaghi Valley.

Fortunately, it seems that the Energy Ministry has been convinced to temporarily suspend the filling of the reservoir of the Sivand Dam.

Last week, a report announcing that the ministry planned to begin filling the reservoir in the very near future caused a media frenzy, and cultural heritage enthusiasts held peaceful protests in front of the Majlis asking the Iranian parliament to intervene to postpone the operation that would flood a great part of the valley.