TEHRAN – The plasterwork of the Sassanid-era (224–651) Bandian complex in Dargaz, Khorasan Razavi province, has been documented, a local tourism official has said.

The documentation project was carried out in three dimensions using a photogrammetric method, Mahmoud Toghrai explained on Sunday.

This project not only maintains the details of the plasterwork in a computer but also provides protection of the artifacts and the possibility of creating replicas elsewhere, the official added.

In the Sassanid era, the Bandian Site-Museum was a sanctuary and temple where Zoroastrians practiced their rituals. What is amazing are the stucco decorations of the temple, which are very well preserved.

During six phases of excavations, the building’s central part, its main hall, and several rooms and corridors were unearthed.

The ceiling of the hall is supported by four lime columns. The building also has a Mihrab (prayer niche). The excavation of a small room south of Mehrab revealed that it could have been used as a place to store mail and gifts received. Several stamps with patterns, including a deer, a griffin, and a person's bust with the word ‘Rouzbeh’ on both sides, support this interpretation.

In many ways, Iran under Sassanian rule witnessed tremendous achievements of Persian civilization. Experts say that the art and architecture of the nation experienced a general renaissance during Sassanid rule.

In that era, crafts such as metalwork and gem engraving grew highly sophisticated, as scholarship was encouraged by the state; many works from both the East and West were translated into Pahlavi, the official language of the Sassanians.

The legendary wealth of the Sassanian court is fully confirmed by the existence of more than one hundred examples of bowls or plates of precious metal known at present. One of the finest examples is the silver plate with partial gilding in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The dynasty was destroyed by Arab invaders during a span from 637 to 651.

ABU/AM