...and this last one...




Burial Site of Elamite King Undergoes Excavations, Iran

Feb 13, 2005, 06:50
The archeological site of Arjan, Khuzestan province, where it is believed that the greatest Elamite King has been buried along with all his invaluable personal pocessions, will soon undergo new studies.

Archeologist will start in a few days time to demarcate and dig boring pits in Arjan area, which is some 300-400 hectares and is located in Behbahan, in the southern province of Khuzestan.

During the work, experts aim to answer numerous questions they have and specially find out whether the area has really been the Elamite city where one of the greatest Elamite Kings, Kiddin-Khutran (1235 - 1210 BC), ruled.

A decade age, the coffin of Kiddin-Khutran, burried gloriously in the Arjan area, was accidentally discovered, bringing its site to world-wide fame. Invaluable items including a heavy gold ring which was an indication of the King’s power, were found in the metal coffin.

Today the site has become the target of agricultural activities of locals who have entered the land without permission of the Iranian Cultural Heritage and Tourism (ICHTO) Department of Khuzestan. Archeologists and officials of the ICHTO hope that setting the perimeters of the site would help move the farmers out and preserve the land.

So far no archeological research has been carried out on the historical site of Arjan and the coming up activities are considered to initiate a new archeological season, which experts hope would reveal secrets of the Elamite King unburried there before, and introduce another part of Iran’s history to the world.