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Today 17:40
Blue Shield markers being installed on ancient bridges in Lorestan
TEHRAN - Blue Shield emblems are being installed on historic bridges in the western province of Lorestan as part of efforts to protect cultural heritage sites during armed conflict, the provincial cultural heritage chief said.
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2026-07-29 17:29
Study points to Sasanian military control reaching Indian Ocean
TEHRAN - A comprehensive geochemical study of ancient transport containers from the Fulayj fort in Oman has provided compelling new evidence of extensive maritime trade networks linking the Iranian heartlands with the Arabian coast during the Late Sasanian and Early Islamic periods.
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2026-07-28 17:00
Kermanshah among West Asia’s oldest human settlement areas, researcher says
TEHRAN – Kermanshah is one of the oldest known areas of human settlement in the Iranian Plateau and West Asia, with archaeological evidence indicating human presence dating back as far as one million years, Iranian researcher and historian Mohsen Derekeh said on Monday.
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2026-07-26 17:12
7,500-year-old Tepe Sialk undergoes restoration work
TEHRAN – Iranian authorities have launched the second phase of restoration work at the Tepe Sialk archaeological site in Kashan following the completion of improvements to the site's entrance, a provincial cultural heritage official said on Sunday.
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2026-07-26 14:12
UNESCO grants World Heritage status to Iran’s Alamut Castle and Related Fortifications
TEHRAN – Iran’s “Alamut Castle and Related Fortifications” has been inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List, becoming the country’s 30th tangible cultural heritage property to receive the prestigious international designation.
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2026-07-25 17:21
Ancient Espi Mazget up for restoration, tourism development by private sector
TEHRAN - Authorities in Iran's northern Gilan province plan to protect, restore and develop the historic Espi Mazget monument for tourism through a partnership with a private investor, a senior provincial official said during a visit to the site on Saturday.
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2026-07-20 17:15
Oldest known photographs reveal how Persepolis has changed over time
TEHRAN - The oldest known photographs of Persepolis, the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire and now a UNESCO World Heritage site, provide a rare visual record of the monument before modern archaeological excavations reshaped its appearance.
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2026-07-20 17:14
Ilam to showcase historical heritage to Arbaeen pilgrims, official says
TEHRAN – Iran’s western province of Ilam will use the annual Arbaeen pilgrimage to introduce its historical monuments and ancient civilization to domestic and foreign pilgrims passing through the Mehran border crossing, the province’s cultural heritage chief said on Monday.
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2026-07-19 18:59
Ancient Alamut fortifications complete Iran’s architectural and defensive history, expert says
TEHRAN - The proposed UNESCO World Heritage nomination of the Cultural Landscape of Alamut and its related fortifications would complete the historical narrative of Iran’s architectural and defensive heritage, Iranian cultural heritage veteran Seyyed Mohammad Beheshti said on Sunday.
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2026-07-19 18:48
Prominent Iranian archaeologist Ismail Yaghmaei passes away at 84
TEHRAN – Ismail Yaghmaei (also known as Ehsan Yaghmaei), one of Iran’s renowned archaeologists and a veteran of the country’s cultural heritage, passed away on Sunday morning, at Pars Hospital in Tehran. He was 84.
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2026-07-19 18:33
Ancient Iranian goldsmithing in spotlight as 3,000-year-old earrings worn by actress spark heritage
TEHRAN – A pair of earrings incorporating approximately 3,000-year-old Iranian gold medallions has sparked international debate over the use of ancient cultural artifacts in contemporary fashion, drawing renewed attention to the sophistication of ancient Iranian jewelry making and raising questions about the ownership, preservation and ethical use of archaeological objects.
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2026-07-17 16:43
Iran, Iraq can expand cooperation on shared Sassanian heritage sites: official
TEHRAN - Manouchehr Habibi, the governor-general of Iran’s Kermanshah province, has said that Iran and Iraq can broaden cooperation on shared Sassanian heritage sites through joint cultural and tourism projects linked to the proposed Sassanian historical route extending from western Iran into eastern Iraq.
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2026-07-14 16:43
By Sonia Shidrang, Assistant Professor at Shahid Beheshti University
Prehistoric Sites of the Khorramabad Valley and Iran’s deep past on UNESCO World Heritage List
This week marks the first anniversary of a milestone that reshaped how the world sees Iran’s ancient past. On July 11, 2025, during the 47th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee in Paris, the Paleolithic Sites of the Khorramabad Valley were inscribed on the World Heritage List—Iran’s 29th such site, and its first ever dedicated to the Paleolithic period.
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2026-07-12 17:03
Historical mihrab discovered at Pasargadae World Heritage site
TEHRAN - A historical mihrab has been discovered during restoration and conservation work at a caravanserai within the UNESCO-listed Pasargadae archaeological site in southern Iran.
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2026-07-11 17:26
Citizen donates three Iron Age artifacts to Iran’s Ilam cultural heritage authority
TEHRAN - A resident of Chavar county in western Iran has donated three historical artifacts from the Iron Age to the provincial cultural heritage authority in Ilam, the head of the organization said on Saturday.
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2026-07-11 17:24
Tchogha Zanbil, Iran’s first UNESCO World Heritage site
TEHRAN - Situated about 40 km southeast of UNESCO-listed Susa, Tchogha Zanbil preserves the remains of Dur-Untash, a religious city founded in the 13th century BC by the Elamite king Untash-Napirisha. At its center stands a monumental ziggurat that is regarded as one of the best-preserved examples of its kind in the world.
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2026-07-10 16:32
Wrestlers of the 7th century AH: When sport became eternal in an Ilkhanid luster tile
Hidden among the treasures of the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore is a remarkable fragment of medieval Iranian art: a six-pointed, star-shaped lusterware tile produced in Kashan during the Ilkhanid period (late 13th–early 14th century CE). Against a deep cobalt-blue ground, shimmering white and golden-brown luster decoration frames a dynamic wrestling match. At the center, two men are locked in combat. One has been forced to the ground while his opponent bends over him, controlling his arm in a grappling hold rendered with striking realism.
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2026-07-05 21:42
Jameh Mosque of Dezful: An architectural treasure in Iran’s city of bricks
TEHRAN - Jameh Mosque of Dezful is one of the oldest and most significant Islamic monuments in southwestern Iran.
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2026-07-03 18:29
Persepolis through the eyes of Iran’s martyred leader
TEHRAN – As Iran prepares to bid farewell to its martyred leader, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, one of the defining moments reflecting his vision of the country’s cultural identity has once again come into focus: his historic visit to the UNESCO-listed Persepolis in 1988, where he described the ancient site as a “valuable treasure” that must be safeguarded for future generations.
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2026-06-30 21:05
Shushtar’s World Heritage value lies in its engineering system, not individual structures: official
TEHRAN – The outstanding universal value of Iran’s UNESCO-listed Shushtar Historical Hydraulic System lies in the engineering knowledge and integrated water management system behind its construction rather than its individual bridges, dams or mills, the head of the World Heritage site said as the country marked the 17th anniversary of its inscription.
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2026-06-29 17:53
Isfahan unveils tourism roadmap, plans heritage restoration after recent damage
TEHRAN – Isfahan province has prepared a new tourism development roadmap, launched plans to revive historical corridors and begun restoring heritage sites damaged during recent US-Israeli airstrikes, Governor-general Mehdi Jamalinejad said on Monday.
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2026-06-28 18:03
French archaeologist cracks 4,000-year-old Elamite script from Iran
TEHRAN – French archaeologist François Desset has decoded the 4,000-year-old Linear Elamite writing system from ancient Iran, unlocking one of the last undeciphered scripts of the ancient Near East after years of research.
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2026-06-27 17:55
Official highlights Tirgan as key element of Iran's intangible cultural heritage
TEHRAN – The head of Iran's Research Institute of Cultural Heritage and Tourism has described the ancient festival of Tirgan as one of the country's most significant elements of intangible cultural heritage, saying it reflects enduring links between nature, mythology and Iranian society.
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2026-06-26 17:36
Gonabad, an emerging destination for religious tourism
TEHRAN - Gonabad, a historic city in Khorasan Razavi province, is an emerging destination for religious tourism after registering the highest number of Ashura-related events in Iran’s national tourism calendar, a local cultural heritage official said.
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2026-06-26 17:35
Genetic tests underway on remains found in Ilkhanid royal cemetery
TEHRAN - Iranian archaeologists have begun genetic analysis of human remains uncovered in newly excavated Ilkhanid-era royal tombs near the UNESCO-listed Dome of Soltaniyeh in northwestern Iran, as researchers seek to identify members of the ruling dynasty buried at the site, officials said.
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2026-06-21 17:57
Dehdasht development plan approved after 20-year delay, linking growth to historic preservation
TEHRAN - Authorities in Iran's southwestern Kohgiluyeh-Boyerahmad province have approved and issued a new comprehensive urban development plan for the city of Dehdasht after a 20-year delay, a move officials said would support tourism development and the preservation of the historic Belad-e Shapur district.
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2026-06-20 17:31
Ancient DNA reveals Zagros foothills as Bronze Age crossroads of peoples and cultures
TEHRAN - The Zagros mountain range and its foothills have long served as a crossroads for the movement of peoples, cultures, and languages. A question that has occupied scholars for decades is whether these cultural influences and population movements were accompanied by significant genetic changes. New research published in Genome Biology, which analyzed the ancient DNA of 17 individuals from the archaeological site of Bakr Awa in Iraqi Kurdistan, located in the western foothills of the Zagros, offers important insights into this question.
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2026-06-19 17:56
66 endangered handicraft disciplines revived over five years, official says
TEHRAN - Iran has revived 66 handicraft disciplines that were at risk of disappearing over the past five years through support measures aimed at preserving traditional knowledge and skills, a senior handicrafts official said.
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2026-06-19 17:55
Achaemenid column base, other relics unearthed in UNESCO-listed Hegmataneh
TEHRAN - Iranian archaeologists conducting the 25th season of excavations at the UNESCO-listed ancient site of Hegmataneh in western Iran have uncovered an Achaemenid-era column base, remnants of medieval Islamic water management systems, and architectural remains dating to the Qajar and early Pahlavi periods, the excavation director said.
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2026-06-17 17:50
Breathing life into a 6,000-year-old instrument: the Chogha Mish harp project
TEHRAN - For more than two decades, Iranian musician, instrument maker, and researcher Abdolali Bagherinejad has pursued an ambitious goal: reviving the sound of a harp that fell silent over 6,000 years ago. The celebrated curved harp has been reconstructed through meticulous study of ancient visual evidence from the archaeological site of Chogha Mish, near Dezful in southwestern Iran's Khuzestan province.