TEHRAN – Sections of an old structure, which probably belongs to a public bathhouse, have been exposed by chance during a grading and site preparation in Shiraz, southern Iran.

“The discovery of an old structure, which was uncovered by construction machinery during a site preparation, was immediately notified to the general directorate [of cultural heritage, tourism, and handicrafts of Fars province] by Shiraz Municipality,” deputy provincial tourism chief said on Saturday.

“The age and type of the aging structure are to be announced by cultural heritage experts of the province, however, initial findings suggest it is probably a bathhouse,” the official said.

Bathhouses or ‘hammams’ in Iran were not only places for bathing and cleaning up. They had a social concept for people who gathered at these places weekly. It was a place where people talked with each other about their daily life and shared humor and news. There are still bathhouses in Iranian cities but they do not have their social function anymore since most people have bathrooms in their homes due to the modern lifestyle. Some cities had separate bathhouses for men and women. They were usually built next to each other. However, there were some bathhouses, which were used by men and women at different times of the day.

Celebrated as the heartland of Persian culture for over 2000 years, Shiraz has become synonymous with education, nightingales, poetry, and crafts skills passed down from generation to generation. It was one of the most important cities in the medieval Islamic world and was the Iranian capital during the Zand dynasty from 1751 to 1794.

Shiraz is home to some of the country’s most magnificent buildings and sights such as various bazaars, caravansaries, mosques including Eram Garden, Afif-Abad Garden, Tomb of Hafez, Tomb of Sa’di, Jameh Mosque of Atigh, and Shah Cheraq Mausoleum to name a few.

AFM