TEHRAN – A medium-sized 4.8 magnitude earthquake rattled parts of the western province of Kermanshah on Monday, but caused no damage to historical sites across the province.

Based on field visits by the experts assessors and experts from the province’s Cultural Heritage, Tourism, and Handicrafts Department no serious damage to historical structures and monuments in the the counties of Qasr-e Shirin, Sarpol-e Zahab, Gilan-e Gharb, and Dalahu has been reported so far, the provincial tourism chief Jabbar Gohari said on Wednesday. 

In 2017, a powerful 7.3-magnitude earthquake struck the province causing relatively minor damage to several historic and heritage sites in Kermanshah and Ilam provinces.

It damaged five historical sites including a Safavid-era caravanserai and a Sassanid-era fortress in the counties of Qasr-e Shirin, Sarpol-e Zahab, and Dalahu in Kermanshah province while it caused some cracks in the walls of an archaeological museum in Darreh Shahr, Ilam Province.

Unfortunately, the natural disaster claimed the lives of at least 400 people and injured more than 6500 and it was felt in several other provinces.

Iran is crisscrossed by major geological fault lines and has suffered several devastating earthquakes in recent years.

Kermanshah embraces a variety of awe-inspiring historical sites including Bisotun and Taq-e Bostan, both on the UNESCO World Heritage list.

Inscribed into the base of a towering cliff, Taq-e Bostan comprises extraordinary Sassanian bas-reliefs of ancient victorious kings divide opinions. Late afternoon is the best time to visit, as the cliff turns a brilliant orange in the setting sun, which then dies poetically on the far side of the duck pond.

Bisotun is a patchwork of immense yet impressive life-size carvings depicting king Darius I and several other figures. UNESCO has it that Bisotun bears outstanding testimony to the important interchange of human values on the development of monumental art and writing, reflecting ancient traditions in monumental bas-reliefs.

ABU/AFM