TEHRAN – A prehistorical bas-relief carving, depicting the head of an Achaemenid soldier, has recently been found in the baggage of a passenger during a routine police investigation near the city of Na’in, central Iran.

Police officers of an intercity checkpoint, near the city of Na’in, were made suspicious about a passenger bus and stopped it, ILNA quoted Na’in police commander Hadi Kianmehr as saying on Friday.

“During the inspection of the passenger’s bag, a stone statue of an Achaemenid soldier was discovered…. The object then was handed over to Na’in’s cultural heritage department,” the police official explained.

The relic dates back [over] 2,000 years ago and an individual (the bearer) has been detained in that regard, he added.

Achaemenian Dynasty, also called Achaemenid, Persian Hakhamanishiya, (c. 550–330 BC), was the largest and most durable empire of its time, stretching from Ethiopia, through Egypt, to Greece, to Anatolia (modern Turkey), Central Asia, and to India.

Building activity was extensive during the height of the empire, and of the several Achaemenian capitals, the ruins at Pasargadae and at Persepolis are probably the most outstanding. Achaemenian sculptured reliefs and a great number of smaller art objects present a remarkably unified style for the period. Metalwork, especially in gold, was highly developed, and a variety of carefully executed examples survive.

AFM/MG