TEHRAN – The historical city of Sirvan in the western Iranian province of Ilam will undergo some rehabilitation works, provincial tourism chief Abdolmalek Shanbehzadeh announced on Tuesday, CHTN reported.

The restoration project aims at preserving, protecting, and strengthening the city’s historical sites, which have been damaged over the past years, he added.

The historical city of Sirvan, which is estimated to date from Sassanid era (224–651), was inscribed on Iran’s National Heritage List in 2001. 

The under-the-radar province is making its best to grow into a major travel destination for both domestic and international holidaymakers, sightseers, history buffs, and nature lovers. 

The province registered some 580,000 overnight stays, including 10,000 foreign nationals, during the past Iranian calendar year 1398 (ended March 20), Shanbehzadeh announced earlier this month. He publicized in January that 1.63 million travelers visited historical sites and heritage museums across the lesser-known province during the first nine months of the year 1398.

Iran under Sassanian rule (224-651 CE) witnessed tremendous achievements of Persian civilization. Experts say that during Sassanid era the art and architecture of the nation experienced a general renaissance. In that era, crafts such as metalwork and gem-engraving grew highly sophisticated, as scholarship was encouraged by the state; many works from both the East and West were translated into Pahlavi, the official language of the Sassanians.

ABU/MG