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Happy Cyrus the Great Day

happy cyrus day 2This year, the twenty-ninth day of October 2014, coincides with the annual celebration of “Cyrus the Great Day” by Iranian people and many friends of culture across the globe. In 2005, the Pasargad Heritage Foundation – the first international NGO for preservation of the cultural heritage of Iran- that introduced the idea. At the time, Cyrus’ mausoleum in Iran- a monument registered on the UNESCO’s world heritage list – was in danger of being inundated and eventually destroyed. However, the hard work of this Foundation and timely intervention of UNESCO, human rights activists and organizations removed the danger and led to a world-wide recognition of Cyrus’ seminal contribution to the survival of our common human civilization. Such recognition has been further evidenced by the exhibition of Cyrus cylinder in a number of museums in major cities in United States of America. 

Happy cyrus day

October 29, the “Cyrus the Great Day” and the anniversary of the first declaration of human rights. Twenty six centuries ago, when savagery was the dominant factor in human societies, a civilized and compassionate declaration was written on clay and issued to the “four corners of the world”, addressing important issues relevant to human rights; the very same issues that today we face and could also inspire and mobilize those who believe in human dignity and rights. 

This document, known as “The Declaration of Cyrus the Great,” emphasized the removal of all racial discrimination and slavery, and bestowing to all people, freedom to choose their places of residence, and practice their own chosen faith and religion, therefore, attempting to create peace amongst all nations. This Declaration could actually be considered a present from the Iranian people to all humanity, expressed through the words of Cyrus, the founder of the first empire in the Iran. In 1971, the general assembly of the United Nations recognized this declaration as the first Declaration of Human Rights.

From savepasargad.com

Mozart’s Piano Sonata Discovered in Budapest

mozartLate last month, it was reported that Mozart’s A major piano sonata K331 has been discovered in Budapest’s National Szechenyi Library. The priceless manuscript that had lain in the musty depths of the Library was rediscovered by a Haydn scholar.

The musicologist Balazs Mikusi found a substantive part of one of Mozart’s most famous instrumental pieces, the A major piano sonata K331, which was composed in 1783. The finale which is one of Wolfgang’s most instantly recognizable tunes, and whose opening movement, is a set of brilliantly fascinating variations he ever composed. The final page of the original manuscript has long been known to Mozart scholars, and is part of the legacy in Mozart’s hometown, Salzburg, but no original manuscript of the rest of the piece had ever been seen in modern times.

However, it is not known how the missing pages ended up in Hungary or at the Budapest’s National Szechenyi Library. Zoltan Kocsis’s actually performed the sonata at the Szechenyi Library but the library has not allowed anyone to see the actual discovered pages yet.

Austria-Hungary, also known as the Austro-Hungarian Empire and by other names, was a constitutional union of the Empire of Austria and the Apostolic Kingdom of Hungary that existed from 1867 to 1918, when it collapsed as a result of defeat in World War I. The union was a result of the Compromise of 1867. 

Step Pyramid of Djoser damaged during restoration

pyramidEgyptian media and other news outlets reported last month that the Djoser pyramid had been damaged during restoration work. The 4,600 year old monument which dominates necropolis of Saqqara, south-west of Cairo, is now the subject of investigation and request for answers by the UNESCO. In fact, after the media outlets published the report, the UNESCO sent a letter to the ministry of antiquities requesting a detailed report on the restoration work.

The UNESCO will wait for the report as well as the plans for future work at the site. Several Egyptian experts have already criticized the work and experts also have expressed concerns about the company that was hired to do the restoration work saying that the company does not have the necessary experience. However, the Egyptian officials have rejected the concern. The project which started in 2006 was interrupted in February 2013 due to lack of funding.

Djoser step pyramid was finished in 2611BC and was considered the largest building of its time. The pyramid reportedly was the burial place of pharaoh Djoser, the third king of Eqypt’s third dynasty and also it has been reported that the tomb was plundered in ancient times, leaving only Djoser’s mummified left foot. The pyramid’s architect, Imhotep, was deified 1,400 years after his lifetime. The tomb originally stood 62 meters tall and is considered the oldest building in the world built entirely of stone.