TEHRAN – A team of Iranian archaeologists has recently discovered remnants of an ancient fire temple in Savadkuh county, which is situated in the heart of the Alborz mountain range.

The fire temple is estimated to date from the Sassanid era (224 CE-651), Mehdi Abedini Araqi, who leads the archaeological survey, said on Monday.

The discovery was made at a distance of about five kilometers from the historical Espahbod Khorshid Cave, he noted.

The fire temple was constructed in the form of ‘Chartaqi’, which was a prominent element in Iranian architecture, having various functions and used in both secular and religious contexts for over 1,500 years.

Soaked in a vibrant history, Mazandaran (also known as Tabarestan) was a cradle of civilization since the beginning of the first millennium BC. According to Britannica Encyclopedia, it was almost overrun in about 720 CE by the Arab raiders.

Its insecure eastern and southeastern borders were crossed by Mongol invaders in the 13th and 14th centuries. Cossacks attacked the region in 1668 but were repulsed. It was ceded to the Russian Empire by a treaty in 1723, but the Russians were never secure in their occupation. The area was restored to Iran under the Qajar dynasty. The northern section of the region consists of a lowland alongside the Caspian and an upland along the northern slopes of the Alborz Mountains.

AFM