Tehran, 30 November 2006 (CHN Foreign Desk) -- Experts of the Cultural Heritage and Tourism Department of Khuzestan province are about to delimit the historic city of Ivan Karkheh to protect it against intrusions. Having a 400-hectare-area, 100 hectares of which already allocated to Azad University of Dezful, Ivan Karkheh historic city dates back to the Sassanid dynastic era (224-651 AD).    

 

The decision to clearly define boundaries of this Sassanid city has been made in order to preserve it against constructions of Dezful Azad University as well as agricultural activities.

 

According to Mohsen Hosseini, director of research department of the Cultural Heritage and Tourism Department of Khuzestan, one of the major problems for protecting historic sites is the fact that many of them have never been delimited. Regarding the Sassanid city of Ivan Karkheh, Hosseini said: “We have asked the Iranian Cultural Heritage and Tourism Organization to allocate enough budget to the project to determine the boundaries of this historical city and buy the land in which it is located. After that, we will enclose the entire area with fences.”

 

A number of governmental organizations including Natural Resources Organization of Khuzestan province have already announced their readiness to allocate a piece of land in another place to the University in order to free the occupied land.

 

A number of provincial representatives in the Iranian Parliament have also expressed their concern about construction activities of Dezful Azad University in the lands belonging to the Sassanid city of Ivan Karkheh and have announced their willingness for any kind of cooperation to solve this problem.

 

Many of the historic evidence of Khuzestan province, including those of the Sassanid city of Ivan Karkheh, were devastated during the eight year war with Iraq in the 1980s. Since the war ended in 1988, no serious action was taken to restore this historic city; and now agricultural activities have further destroyed the historic evidence of the region.

 

The historic site of Ivan Karkheh is located 18 kilometers from the city of Dezful along the banks of Karkheh River, southwest Iran. It stands on the ruins of a splendid brick palace left from the Sassanid dynastic era and was one of the most important cities of Khuzestan province during that time.

 

 

Soudabeh Sadigh

foreigndesk@chn.ir