Free Republic

The world's oldest undeciphered writing system, which has so far defied attempts to uncover its 5,000-year-old secrets, could be about to be decoded by Oxford University academics. This international research project is already casting light on a lost bronze age middle eastern society where enslaved workers lived on rations close to the starvation level... Dr Dahl's secret weapon is being able to see this writing more clearly than ever before... a big black dome is clicking away and flashing out light... It's being used to help decode a writing system called proto-Elamite, used between around 3200BC and 2900BC in a...

Jiroft is the ancient city of Marhashi: U.S. scholarWednesday, May 7, 2008 Tehran Times Culture Desk Jiroft is the ancient city of Marhashi: U.S. scholar TEHRAN -- Piotr Steinkeller, professor of Assyriology in Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations of Harvard University, believes that the prehistoric site of Jiroft is the lost ancient city of Marhashi. He developed the theory in his paper during the first round of the International Conference on Jiroft Civilization, which was held in Tehran on May 5 and 6. Marhashi, (in earlier sources Warahshe) was a 3rd millennium BC polity situated east of Elam,...

Archaeologists have Discovered the World's Oldest Inscription in Jiroft 05 November 2007 LONDON, (CAIS) -- Archaeologists have discovered the world's most ancient inscription in the Iranian city of Jiroft, near the Halil Roud historical site. "The inscription, discovered in a palace, was carved on a baked mud-brick whose lower left corner has only remained,” explained Professor Yousof Majid-Zadeh, head of the Jiroft excavation team. “The only ancient inscriptions known to experts before the Jiroft discovery were cuneiform and hieroglyph,” said Majid Zadeh, adding that,”the new-found inscription is formed by geometric shapes and no linguist around the world has been able...

In a ruling that could affect other countries' attempts to secure the return of antiquities, Britain's High Court rejected Iran's claim that it owned the artifacts... Lawyers acting for Iran said the treasures were among thousands of pieces stolen by looters after floods washed away the topsoil and exposed the ancient city of Jiroft in 2001. Senior judge Charles Gray said Iran had failed to prove its legal ownership of the jars, cups and other items but gave permission for his ruling to be challenged at the appeal court... The gallery's London lawyers, Lane & Partners, said the antiquities were...

Jiroft is lost link of chain of civilization: Majidzadeh TEHRAN, Jan. 12 (MNA) -- Iranian archaeologist Yusef Majidzadeh believes that Jiroft is the lost link of the chain of civilization and says it has such a significant civilization that he would be proud to be named an honorary citizen of the ancient site. In a seminar entitled “Jiroft, the Cradle of Oriental Civilization” held in Kerman on Thursday, he said, “The history of civilization in Jiroft dates back to 2700 BC and the third millennium civilization is the lost link of the chain of civilization which archaeologists have long sought....

Shrouded 5000-year-old child unearthed in southeastern Iran TEHRAN, Dec. 19 (MNA) -- The skeleton of a 5000-year-old child wrapped in a winding sheet was discovered at the foot of a wall in the Taleb Khan Mound, which is located near the Burnt City in Sistan-Baluchestan Province. “The skeleton was discovered in a room of a house, while remnants of a white cloth were found around it. The cloth shows that the child had been shrouded before burial,” Mehdi Miri, the director of the archaeological team working at the site, said on Tuesday. “It was common for children to be buried...

Two tombs carved out of rock were recently discovered at the Qal'eh Kuchak mound by the team of archaeologists working at the Jiroft ancient site. The team began the fifth phase of excavations of Jiroft, which is located in the Halil-Rud River cultural area, in late October. Due to their magnificent structure, the archaeologists believe they may be the tombs of kings who ruled the region. "The ancient inhabitants of the region constructed a place like an orthogonal room measuring 2.5x2.5 meters. The place has some stairs leading to two cave-like tombs," team director Yusef Majidzadeh told the Persian service...

Ancient Metal Relics Discovered in Jiroft Jul 19, 2006 The police department of Jiroft succeeded in confiscating 41 metal relics belonging to the pre-historic and historic periods. The most ancient one is a Riton belonging to the third millennium BC. Riton is a kind of goblet with the head of an animal, usually in the shape of a lion, horse, ibex, or winged lion. "The police department of Jiroft found 41 bronze, copper, and silver relics. The most ancient one is a Riton with the head of a humped cow belonging to some 5000 years ago," said Nader Soleimani, archeologist...

Iran-Cave MP from Jiroft, Ali Zadsar here Wednesday said that a village whose residents are cavemen has been discovered at the heights of the city of Jiroft near Anbarabad in the southeastern province of Kerman. Speaking on the sidelines of Majlis open session, he said that a village was discovered 120 kms from the town of Anbarabad in the winter of 2005. He added that the residents of the newly-discovered village put on no clothes and feed on leaves. Zadsar said, "The village, called Pid-Nekoupieh, is situated in the mountain and the 200 people who live there have never left...

New Discoveries in Jiroft May Change History of Civilization Jan 26, 2006 Latest archeological excavations in Jiroft, known as the hidden paradise of world archeologists, resulted in the discovery of a bronze statue depicting the head of goat which dates back to the third millennium BC. This statue was found in the historical cemetery of Jirof where recent excavations in the lower layers of this cemetery revealed that the history of the Halil Rud region dates back to the fourth millennium BC, a time that goes well beyond the age of civilization in Mesopotamia "One of the reasons the archeologists...

"Five Elamit professional linguists from different countries have studied the brick inscription discovered in Jiroft. According to the studies, they have concluded that this discovered inscription is 300 years older than that found in Susa; and most probably the written language went to Susa from this region. However, more studies are still needed to give a final approval to this thesis," said Yousof Majid Zadeh, head of archeological excavation team in Jiroft... Elamit language is only partly understood by scholars. It had no relationship to Sumerian, Semitic or Indo-European languages, and there are no modern descendants of it. After 3000...

New studies show Jiroft was an international trade center 5000 years ago Tehran Times Culture Desk TEHRAN (MNA) –- Studies by foreign archaeologists and experts on seals recently discovered in the Jiroft area prove that Jiroft was an international trade center 5000 years ago. The head of the excavation team in the region, Yusef Majidzadeh, said on Wednesday that several ancient seals in various shapes were discovered during the most recent excavation at the site. “The twenty-five discovered seals show that the regional people made use of seals in their business. They used to put products inside jars, covered the...

Ancient Iranian site shows Mesopotamia-like civilisation [World News]: Tehran, Nov 16 : Shellfish is not seen on most Iranians dining tables but it was part of the daily diet of the inhabitants of ancient Jiroft in southern Iran 5,000 years ago that showed the existence of an ancient civilisation. Jiroft, located in Kerman province, is one of the richest historical areas in the world, with ruins and artefacts dating back to the third millennium BC and with over 100 historical sites located along the approximately 400 km of the Halil Rood riverbank, according to Mehr news agency. Many Iranian and...