TEHRAN – On Saturday, the director of the Shushtar Historical Hydraulic System explained details about an ongoing restoration work aimed at reinforcing a massive wall inside the UNESCO-designated site in southwest Iran.

“Safety measures are implemented to stabilize and strengthen an unstable wall in the Shushtar Historical Hydraulic System. Meanwhile, a restoration project is being carried out on the wall using a specialized manner and with full supervision,” Amin Mahdavikia said.

The project was launched last year after some cultural heritage enthusiasts warned about the unstable situation of the western wall, which is stretched between the site’s ancient hydraulic elements, and some old residential houses attached to the site.

Mahdavikia stressed a complete adherence to international conventions, which demand the safety of local people and visitors in a historical site.

Talking about the instability of the wall, the official said: “Our periodic monitoring has established that the western wall )with a height of about 25 meters and a length of about 600 meters( has moved by about 1.5 cm.”

“So, the possibility of drifting and collapsing was probable at any moment.”

“The wall’s position is very distinct,” the official said. “It overlooks several mills on one side and is connected to some residential buildings on the other side.”

“We have informed the owners of those buildings about the risks of landslides and the possibility of falling and the matter was seriously put on the agenda,” Mahdavikia explained.

The Shushtar Historical Hydraulic System comprises bridges, weirs, tunnels, canals, and a series of ancient watermills powered by human-made waterfalls. It testifies to the heritage and the synthesis of earlier Elamite and Mesopotamian know-how; it was probably influenced by the Petra dam and tunnel and by Roman civil engineering.

“The hydraulic system has been considered a Wonder of the World not only by the Persians but also by the Arab-Muslims at the peak of their civilization,” according to the UN cultural body.

Furthermore, one of its main canals is a veritable artificial watercourse that made possible the construction of a new town and the irrigation of a vast plain, at the time semi-desert.

UNESCO says that the Shushtar Historical Hydraulic System demonstrates outstanding universal value as in its present form, it dates from the 3rd century CE, probably on older bases from the 5th century BC. It is complete, with numerous functions, and large-scale, making it exceptional.

The site is named after the city of Shushtar whose history dates back to the time of Darius, the Great, the Achaemenid king.

AFM