TEHRAN –New rounds of archeological excavations have been commenced on 10 historical sites around Zab River in the city of Piranshahr in the northwestern province of West Azarbaijan, the provincial tourism chief has said.

The project aims at identifying, protecting, and preserving the city’s ancient and historical monuments and hills, Jalil Jabbari announced on Monday.

Exploring and studying previously discovered sites is also a part of the project, the official added.

He also noted that the excavations started in 2016 and several excavation seasons have been carried out since then in the region.

The oldest remains discovered in the area show that the region was inhabited in prehistoric times and the history of human h presence in the region dates back to about 30,000 years ago.

West Azarbaijan embraces a variety of lush natural sceneries, cultural heritage sites, and museums including the UNESCO sites of Takht-e Soleyman and Qareh Klise (St. Thaddeus Monastery), Teppe Hasanlu, and the ruined Bastam Citadel.

The region has been the seat of several ancient civilizations. It formed part of Urartu and later of Media. In the 4th century BC, it was conquered by Alexander the Great and was named Atropatene after one of Alexander’s generals, Atropates, who established a small kingdom there. The area returned to the Persian (Iranian) rule under the Sasanians in the 3rd century CE. The Arabs controlled Azerbaijan from the 7th century until Turkish nomads overran it in the 11th century. Thenceforth the inhabitants of the region were Turkish speakers. The region was overrun by the Mongols in the 13th century, and, under the ruler Hulegu, Azarbaijan became the center of a Mongol empire extending from Syria on the west to the Oxus River (now Amu Darya) on the east.

ABU/MG