TEHRAN – Archaeologists have discovered several millennia-old iron production sites across a historical village in southcentral Iran.

"Several iron production sites and kilns for melting iron ores have been discovered across Chahak rural district in Khatam county of Yazd province," a local tourism official announced on Saturday. 

The discoveries were made during a survey led by Iranian archaeologist Hossein Azizi under the supervision of the Research Institute of Cultural Heritage and Tourism, the official said.

So far, 60 cultural and historical relics and sites, including buildings, castles, aqueducts, tombs, cemeteries, and hills, have been identified during the survey, the report said. 

The oldest cultural elements and artifacts identified so far in this survey date to the late Middle Paleolithic, a period about 25,000 to 35,000 years ago, the official noted. Available data suggest the production of iron objects was practiced in the region during the Achaemenid era (c. 550-330), however, the survey is aimed to determine exact dates for the ancient craftsmanship across the village.   

According to experts, Achaemenid art is a combinatorial art with its elegance and beauty. One of the most elegant artifacts by Achaemenian artists is metal wares, especially bowls. The Achaemenid bowls are one of the most important documents discovered in different parts of the Empire. Some of these bowls have royal inscriptions which represent the importance of these types of wares in the Achaemenid court. Such bowls give researchers significant information about metalwork, decorating style, techniques of production, and commercial, social, economic, and artistic communications.

The Achaemenid Empire (ca. 550–330 BC) was the largest and most durable empire of its time, stretching from Ethiopia, through Egypt, to Greece, to Anatolia (modern Turkey), Central Asia, and to India

With its winding lanes, a forest of badgirs (wind catchers), mud-brick houses, atmospheric alleyways, and centuries of history, Yazd is a delightful place to stay, referring to as a ‘don't miss’ destination by almost all travel associates in the region. The oasis city is wedged between the northern Dasht-e Kavir and the southern Dasht-e Lut on a flat plain ringed by mountains.
AFM