TEHRAN – A comparative chronology table of Iran and the world will be unveiled during an academic conference which will be held at the Milad Tower in Tehran on May 1.

Titled “Comparative Chronology Table of Iran and the World from the Paleolithic Era to the End of the Iron Age”, the initiative has been organized by Iranology Foundation and developed by a cluster of Iranian experts to give a fresh look into the role and place of Iran in the progress of human societies.

The foundation’s director Ayatollah Seyyed Mohammad Khamenei along with several other scholars and archaeology professors will deliver lectures on the national project that encapsulates occurrences from the Paleolithic era to the late Iron Age.

One of the advantages of developing a reliable chronology is enhancing a more meticulous familiarity with the history, culture, politics, economy, sciences, and art of each society in comparison to other societies. Undoubtedly, such a chronology provides plenty of data in different fields to interested parties. Presently, several chronologies which have been mainly developed by Western researchers are available. However, no noteworthy activity has been carried out in this regard in Iran, the foundation says.

Parts of an introduction to the chronology reads as follows:

“Given the historical negligence of eastern countries and Europeans’ innate megalomania, which began since the Renaissance and, particularly since the Industrial Revolution and the subsequent scientific advancements, the latter set out to write the history of the world from their own point of view. In doing so, either advertently or inadvertently, they failed to provide accurate accounts and interpretations of important aspects of human progress.
Hence, many of the world chronologies, when introducing Iran, rarely move beyond the Achaemenid era [c. 550–330 BC] and interpreted many of the later significant human achievements in a pre-historical context while focusing on the centrality of Mesopotamia. Clearly, several political thoughts and positions have promoted such an approach.”

PHOTO: A poster for the Conference of Comparative Chronology of Iran and the World

AFM/MG