TEHRAN—A routine road construction project recently yielded a surprising discovery when crews unearthed several tomb chambers near the village of Owltan, which is situated in Parsabad county of Ardabil province, northwest Iran.

“Workers have discovered several ancient tombs near the village of Owltan during work to widen a road that connects Parsabad to Sarband,” ILNA quoted archaeologist Rouhollah Mohammadi as saying on Monday.

A team of archaeologists led by Mohammadi is currently excavating the tombs under the supervision of the Research Institute for Cultural Heritage and Tourism (RICHT), the report said.

“So far, nine graves have been identified and studied. However, those graves, which belong to two historical periods, are mostly damaged by heavy road construction machinery,” Mohammadi said.

“All the graves are pit-shaped and the burials are related to the early Islamic centuries until the Seljuk period as well as the Parthian period,” the archaeologist said.

Heaven for cemetery enthusiasts

Home to nearly all kinds of historical tombs, museums such as tomb towers, and rack-hewn tombs, Iran is well soaked in history and culture, and never disappoints cultural travelers with almost every taste even ones interested in cemetery tourism.

The ancient land is heaven for cemetery enthusiasts and grave hunters who have a passion for and enjoyment of cemeteries, epitaphs, gravestone rubbing, photography, art, and the history of famous deaths.

Consider Shahr-e Yeri, known as the “city of the mouthless”! It is a unique archaeological site and cemetery in northwest Iran, embracing an Iron-Age fortress, three prehistorical temples, and tens of carved stones on which mouthless faces are depicted, all stretched across 400 hectares of several small hills.

The country is also home to a great number of brick tomb towers. Top on the list may be ones dedicated to the Prophet Habakkuk in Hamedan province. Kharaqan twin tomb towers in Qazvin province and the UNESCO-registered Gonbad-e Qabus in Golestan province are amongst others to name a few.

A variety of spectacular massive rock-hewn tombs and bas-relief carvings at Naqsh-e Rostam has turned the southern site into a must-see for holidaymakers traversing Iran. One of the wonders of the ancient world, Naqsh-e Rostam embraces four tombs where Persian Achaemenid kings are laid to rest, believed to be those of Darius II, Artaxerxes I, Darius I, and Xerxes I (from left to right facing the cliff), although some historians are still debating this.

In another amazing discovery, made in 1993, miners in the Douzlakh Salt Mine of Zanjan Province, accidentally came across a mummified head that was very well preserved to the extent that his pierced ear was still holding the gold earring. The hair, beard, and mustaches were reddish, and his impressive leather boot still contained parts of his leg and foot. In the flowing years, another “salt man” was also discovered at the ancient salt mine. Based on academic studies, their textiles belong to the Achaemenid era (550-330 BC) and the Sassanid period (224 CE–651).

Remains of 13 ancient skeletons, 11 of which were human remains, were discovered at olden water ducts of Persepolis, shedding new light on the way of life in the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire.

Moreover, a few years ago, the discovery of the skeletons of two Parthian ladies at the ancient Tepe Ashraf in Isfahan cemented a hypothesis that another ancient cemetery is being found within the city, offering valuable clues to uncover the obscure history of pre-Islamic Isfahan.

Experts believe that when it comes to cemetery tourism, contrary to popular belief, it is you who will be the protagonist of a hot dialogue of past and present during visits to centuries-old tombs or cemeteries instead of listening to a curator of an exhibition.

AM