According to a Hurriyet Daily News report, a team of researchers led by Elif Koparal of Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University identified the sites of hundreds of Neolithic
settlements and a 2,500-year-old temple dedicated to the goddess Aphrodite during a survey of the Urla-Çeşme peninsula, which is located on Turkey’s western coastline.
Koparal said it is unusual to discover a temple during such a survey of the surface of the ground. “We found a statue piece of a woman on the floor, and then a terracotta female head figure,” Koparal said. The artifacts had been damaged through prolonged exposure to wind and rain. “There is also an inscription around the temple,” she said. The researchers were able to pinpoint the temple’s walls with remote sensing equipment, she added.
News
Hilltop Buddhist Monastery Uncovered in Eastern India
The Times of India reports that a Mahayana Buddhist monastery dated to about the eleventh or twelfth centuries A.D. has been discovered on a hilltop in eastern India. Anil Kumar of Visva Bharati University said the structure featured interconnected cells, wooden doorframes, and lime-plastered floors decorated with red, green, yellow, white, and black paint. The lintel at the entrance to the monastery’s main sacred area depicts two Bodhisattvas known as Manjushri and Avalokiteshvara. Wooden votive tablets recovered at the site each bear the figure of a person that may represent the Buddha. Kumar said some 500 sculptures have also been documented at the site. The name of the monastery, Srimaddharmaviharik aryabhiksusanghasya, was found written in script dated to about
the eighth or ninth centuries A.D. on two burnt clay seals, he added. The large number of metal bangles, and the presence of doors on the cells, suggest that women monks may have lived in the monastery. A woman named Vijayashree Bhadra, who received
donations from Mallika Devi, a queen of the Pala Empire, is known to have served as
chief monk.
1,500-Year-Old Tomb Discovered in Central China
China Daily reports that a tomb dated to the Sui Dynasty (A.D. 581–618) has been unearthed in central China’s Henan Province. The tomb, which contains a coffin bed and screen made of white marble carved with patterns resembling those found in Zoroastrianism and Buddhism, belonged to a previously unknown couple named Qu Qing. An epigraph found in the tomb records events in the couple’s lives and offers new
information about the development of calligraphy during the Sui Dynasty. “The Qu
family lived in the Longxi area, which occupied the main part of the Silk Road for a long
time, so they were deeply influenced by European, West Asian, and Central Asian
cultures,” explained Kong Deming of the Anyang Institute of Cultural Relics and
Archaeology. White porcelain tomb figures produced at the Xiangzhou kiln in Anyang
were also recovered from the tomb. Kong said the figures will help researchers
understand the development of such porcelain
The magnificent Taq Kasra is in complete ruins
Yesterday, several news agencies, quoting non-governmental Iraqi sources, reported that another part of the roof of the Taq Kasra arch monument has collapsed. The Iraqi government has not yet responded to this news, but some supporters of the historical heritage of Iraq and Iran have protested against this apathy.
The Taq Kasra is the only remaining building from the magnificent city of Ctesiphon and its palace, a site which held celebrations and public events during the Sassanid dynasty. Ctesiphon’s palace itself was destroyed in the Arab invasion of Persia, during which its valuables were looted.
The Taq Kasra, which is still known as one of the architectural masterpieces of antiquity, was built in 550 AD and is located to the south of Baghdad, which was a part of the Persian Empire at the time. The archway is considered an important milestone in historical architecture, and is the largest known single-span vault of unreinforced brickwork.
In recent years, parts of the Taq Kasra has collapsed, and despite repeated warnings from archeologists and experts of Persian historical monuments, government officials in both Iran and Iraq have not paid the slightest attention to these urgent calls.
The Pasargad Heritage Foundation has contacted UNESCO several times since March 2019 and has asked UNESCO officials to contact the government officials and bring attention to the dire condition of the Taq Kasra monument. In a last call in 2020, UNESCO promised the foundation’s representative that they would do so immediately. However, no action has yet been taken by UNESCO as far as the Pasargad
Heritage Foundation knows and the condition of the structure is unfortunately still deteriorating.
Happy New Year 2021!
Dear Friends, and Supporters of World Cultural Heritage Voices.
On behalf of our colleagues and volunteers at WCHV, and on the occasion of the Global New Year of 2021, we would like to extend our regards and best wishes for a Happy New Year. Thank you for your support of WCHV, which has been so instrumental in achieving our goals and mission.
German archaeologist Wolfram Kleiss, dies at 90
German archaeologist Wolfram Kleiss, who directed plenty of accomplished archaeological explorations in Iran during the 1970s and 1980s, has recently died aged 90.
Kleiss was an Urartu specialist who also researched and studied various types of buildings and architectural works of different prehistoric and historical periods of Iran.
Kleiss studied and documented everything from Iron Age Urartian fortresses to Qajar bridges and mosques. From 1967 to 79, Kleiss conducted archaeological surveys in northwestern Iran and published the results in a series of articles, according to the National Museum of Iran.
Jebrael Nokandeh, director of the museum, on Tuesday, expressed his condolences on the death of this prolific German researcher and added that his name and memory are undoubtedly alive in the cultural heritage and archaeology community.
Nokandeh also voiced hope that the Tehran branch of the German Archaeological Institute would be able to make Kleiss unpublished documents and notes available to researchers.
On the occasion of the Yalda Festival
Learn from evergreen trees
Yalda is one of the few celebrations in the world that is thousands of years old. This festive event has gone through many highs and lows. And more than any other Iranian festivity, it has been targeted by oppressors who detest joy, music, and celebration, those who cannot even stand the sight of the cypress tree that the pre-Islamic Iranians beautifully decorated every year.
The Persians loved plants, especially the evergreen cypress and pine trees, because of their extraordinary interest in nature (and the fact that in ancient Persia, political and religious leaders encouraged them to preserve nature). They could see that these trees were resilient, standing tall, green, and proud in the face of snow, storms, and cold as winter cold blew through the land, and that these magnificent trees welcome spring in short time with freshness and joy.
It is not a surprise that the cypress has played a prominent role in all of our history: in stories, in rituals, in poetry and literature and art, in architecture and reliefs and inscriptions, and on fabrics and carpets.
I believe it is quite clear that the custom of hanging colorful and cheerful cloths (fabrics and materials) on ancient trees, to which people still adhere to in corners of Iran, is a continuation of the same ancient ritual of decorating cedar and pine trees on the occasion of Yalda. All of these rituals have changed over the last few centuries because during different times, people have been fearful of religious zealots and fanatical leadership.
However, today people who decorate trees come from many different cultural and religious backgrounds. It is good that centuries before the Arab invasion, our evergreen tree and the ritual of decorating the tree was exported to Europe with the followers of Mehr, or Mithra. In Europe the practice and rituals of decorating an evergreen tree was adopted by the Christians and to this day, around the same time as Yalda, in the houses and streets of many countries around the world, this beautiful and glorious tradition is practiced and celebrated. Although as Iranians we have been deprived of the gift of Yalda cypresses in our homes and streets for centuries, we fortunately still celebrate Yalda. Despite the oppression, this beautiful festive date with its green cypress has been engraved in our hearts and mind.
Yalda’s tradition has been with us for a long time, with its enduring light, joy, and the thought of its evergreen, even when they changed the name to “Chelleh.” Even when we have been forced to gather in the corners of our houses for this celebration of sun and love, instead of celebrating it with dancing and singing in public streets and alleyways. Let’s celebrate with pride and joy and away from the eyes of oppression.
Unfortunately, this year, on the eve of the great Yalda, the people of Iran are experiencing immense suffering, pain, and darkness. Both the pandemic and the monster of darkness and tyranny of the Islamic government has fallen on our land. But it is at this time that Yalda reminds us to learn from the evergreens and t0 attain enlightenment. It is not solely our spring of love, but also our wish for future generations’ of happiness and freedom that our people truly deserve.
Next to the Yalda’s ornamented and adorned cypress tree, I wish everyone happiness and a spring of freedom illuminating our land to come.
Desember 20. 2020
Scientists Evaluate Effect of Volcanic Ash on Pompeii’s Murals
According to a statement released by the University of the Basque Country , a team of archaeologists and chemists analyzed wall paintings at Pompeii’s House of Marcus Lucretius, the House of Ariadne, and the House of the Golden Cupids. The murals in these structures were covered with pyroclastic materials when Mount Vesuvius erupted in A.D. 79 and buried the Roman city. Although the layer of ash has preserved the artwork for the past 2,000 years, the researchers found that ions in the pyroclastic materials combine with underground water and promote the crystallization of damaging salts on the artworks when they are uncovered and exposed to air and humidity. Team leader Maite Maguregui concluded that it is important to understand the salt load of the volcanic material in a particular area of Pompeii in order to reduce or even prevent salt damage to the ancient murals.
800-Year-Old Inscription Discovered in Southern India
According to a New Indian Express report, archaeologists have found a Chola-period inscription dated to A.D. 1260 in India’s southern state of Tamil Nadu. The inscription, written by King Vanenja Perumalana Vanakovarayan, refers to a canal and connecting lakes. “During his rule, a canal was built at the south side of Arni lake, and the canal was linked to a lake in Moorkanur,” explained D. Ramesh of the Villupuram Government
Arts College. “Another canal, dug up at the south side of the lake in Moorkanur, was
linked with a lake in Kaduvanur,” he added.
World Soil Day
Keep soil alive, protect soil biodiversity
Plants nurture a whole world of creatures in the soil, that in return feed and protect the
plants. This diverse community of living organisms keeps the soil healthy and fertile.
This vast world constitutes soil biodiversity and determines the main biogeochemical
processes that make life possible on Earth.
This year, by addressing the increasing challenges of soil management, the Food and
Agriculture Organization (FAO) campaign ” Keep soil alive, protect soil biodiversity “
aims to raise awareness of the importance of sustaining healthy ecosystems and human well-being. By encouraging people around the world to engage in proactively improving soil health, the campaign also aims to fight soil biodiversity loss. If we do not act soon, the fertility of soil will continue to be adversely affected at an alarming rate, threatening global food supplies and food safety.
Encouraging all people to participate, FAO has created a thematic website full of
information, initiatives and material to spread the message through different multimedia
platforms.
Background
World Soil Day (WSD) is held annually on 5 December as a means to focus attention on
the importance of healthy soil and to advocate for the sustainable management of soil
resources.
An international day to celebrate Soil was recommended by the International Union of
Soil Sciences (IUSS) in 2002. Under the leadership of the Kingdom of Thailand and
within the framework of the Global Soil Partnership, FAO has supported the formal
establishment of WSD as a global awareness raising platform. The FAO Conference
unanimously endorsed World Soil Day in June 2013 and requested its official adoption at the 68th UN General Assembly. In December 2013, the UN General Assembly responded by designating 5 December 2014 as the first official World Soil Day.
