Top Iranian archaeologist, Firouz Bagherzadeh, dies at 90

TEHRAN – Iranian archaeologist Firouz Bagherzadeh, who was former director of the Archaeological Center of Iran and a specialist in Islamic art, has died aged 90.

Museum of anthropology, cultural heritage to open in northwest Iran

TEHRAN – A local history museum dedicated to the anthropology and cultural heritage of the ancient town of Kowsar and its surroundings will soon open its doors to the public in the northwest Iranian town.

Ancient festival of Pir-e Shaliar canceled due to virus

TEHRAN - Pir-e Shaliar, an ancient annual ceremony celebrating abundance and good fortune, has been called off due to concerns over the coronavirus outbreak.

Sistan-Baluchestan loses $34.2 million in tourism earnings as a result of COVID-19

TEHRAN – Iran’s southeastern Sistan-Baluchestan province has lost 1,440  billion rials ($34.2 million at the official exchange rate of 42,000 rials per dollar) in earnings from tourism as many potential visitors stay away due to the impact of the coronavirus, according to  Alireza Jalalzaei, the provincial tourism chief.

Iran eyes UNESCO status for Siraf, other ancient ports: tourism minister

TEHRAN – Iran seeks to register ancient Siraf port and several other southern seaports on the UNESCO World Heritage list in near future, Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts Minister Ali-Asghar Mounesan has said.

By Afshin Majlesi

Glimpses of bread making in Iran

Since the olden days, bread has been the staple diet of the folks living in the semi-arid Iranian plateau. Traditional and ethnic Persian breads are famed for their strong flavor, quality, and diversity.

Persian Gulf Regional Museum inaugurated in southern Iran

TEHRAN – Iranian tourism minister Ali-Asghar Mounesan on Monday inaugurated a vast museum of cultural heritage and anthropology in the port city of Bushehr, southern Iran.

Intl. Festival of Tribes Culture wraps up in northern Iran

A nomad ensemble performs during the closing ceremony of the 14th International Festival of Tribes Culture in Gorgan, the capital of Iran’s northern province of Golestan, on January 31, 2021.

Living museum of oil extraction to get off the ground near Kashan

TEHRAN – A centuries-old Assarkhane, a traditional factory where special mills were used to grind oilseeds, is set to be turned into a living museum of oil extraction near the oasis city of Kashan, central Iran.

By Seyed Hossein Hosseiniseddiq

Public baths in Iran and interesting customs behind

Most people today have baths in their homes, but in the past, there were public baths that were not just for bathing but also a public place for family, social, business, and even political gatherings.

New restoration work starts on windmills in southeast Iran

TEHRAN – A fresh round of restoration work has been commenced on windmills situated in Hozdar historical area, Sistan-Balouchestan province, southeast Iran.

Qadamgah of UNESCO-tagged Persepolis to be documented

TEHRAN – A documentation and clean-up project will soon be commenced on Qadamgah, a post-Achaemenid rock-cut monument which is located near the UNESCO-registered Persepolis.

Iran, Germany to arrange exhibit on salt mummies

TEHRAN – Iran and Germany are set to arrange a joint exhibition on ancient salt mummies and their belongings, which have been gradually discovered in Iran’s Chehrabad Salt Mine decades ago.

60,000 relics being re-arranged, documented in Iranian museum

TEHRAN – Some 60,000 relics and historical objects are being documented to be put in the right order in the Great Museum of Khorasan, which is located in Mashhad, northeast Iran.

Abandoned cistern reopened after 50 years

TEHRAN – An abandoned Ab-Anbar (cistern) has recently been reopened after 50 years of closure in the city of Torbat-e Heydarieh, northeast Iran.

Iranian province says ready to help restore cultural heritage in war-torn Karabakh

TEHRAN – Tourism chief of Iran’s East Azarbaijan said on Monday the province could soon start restoration of cultural heritage sites and monuments in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Archaeologists to make final attempt to unearth Laodicea Temple

TEHRAN – Iranian archaeologists will be making a final attempt to unearth the ruins of the enigmatic Laodicea Temple, believed to be buried under the modern town of Nahavand in Hamedan province, west-central Iran.

25 restoration projects launched across Sistan-Baluchestan

TEHRAN – A total of 25 restoration projects have been launched across Sistan-Baluchestan since the beginning of the current Iranian calendar year (March 2020).  

Course examines standards to be enforced in traditional glass workshops

TEHRAN – Certain standards, which should be enforced in traditional glass workshops, were discussed in a training course held on Saturday for a host of glassmakers and related individuals in Tehran province.

Iran seeks UNESCO recognition for millennia-old petroglyphs

TEHRAN- Iran will put forward clusters of its millennia-old petroglyphs as a candidate for inclusion in UNESCO’S World Heritage list.

Ancient objects recovered as police bust gang of smugglers

TEHRAN – Iranian police have recently busted a gang of antique dealers in southwestern Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province.

Garden houses to be demolished within legal boundaries of Sialk hills

TEHRAN – A total of eight garden houses, which have been constructed within legal boundaries of Sialk hills, are ordered to be brought down to earth near the significant archaeological site in central Iran.  

Taq Kasra, Sassanid masterpiece of architecture, partly collapses in modern Iraq

TEHRAN – Segments of Taq Kasra, which is an architecturally-important Sasanian-era Persian monument in modern Iraq, has recently been collapsed, Mehr reported based on Iraqi sources.

3000-year-old urn donated to cultural heritage department northwest Iran

TEHRAN – An Iranian man has recently donated a massive clay urn, which is estimated to date 3000 years, to a cultural heritage department in northwest Iran.

Isfahan caravanserais may join other Iranian sisters for collective UNESCO tag

TEHRAN- There are some significant caravanserais, scattered across Isfahan province, which could appear on the shortlist of historical Iranian caravanserais being prepared for a possible inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage list.

Newly-recovered antiquities to go on show in homeland

TEHRAN – A total of 49 glazed bricks, which have recently been returned home from Switzerland, will go on show at a museum in Bukan, where they were first unearthed in western Iran.  

Ancient column base discovered in garden southern Iran

TEHRAN – The pedestal and base of a historical stone column, believed to date from the Achaemenid era, has recently been a discovered in a garden, southern Iran.