Tehran, 20 December 2006 (CHN Foreign Desk) -- Archeological excavations in Bam Citadel led into discovery of the original flagstone, the minaret, pool, and foundation of the Citadel’s Grand Mosque as well as nearly 105 potshards belonging to the Bronze Age, believed to be the most ancient relics ever unearthed in this ancient structure.    

 

Regarding the recent discoveries in Bam Citadel, Leili Sajadi, archeologist and member of Bam Salvation project, said: “Due to the large amount of debris piled up in the Bam Citadel’s Grand Mosque, removing the debris took us 10 months. Once the debris was removed and while we were studying the Mosque, we realized that its architecture had undergone many alterations through the centuries. Continuation of our research led us to unearth the original flagstones on the entrance gate of the Mosque as well as its minaret and pool. This discovery helped us identify the pattern of different architectural styles used in the construction of the mosque during different historic periods.” 

 

Covering a 2464 square meter area, the Grand Mosque of Bam Citadel is built in the eastern part of the Citadel’s public quarter. Further studies on the Mosque revealed that it was once a nocturnal prayer hall which was later changed into a big mosque.

 

The mosque had two entrance gates in its northern and southern parts and was built using adobe, brick and plaster. Evidence also points to the architectural simplicity of the mosque.

 

According to Sajadi, the Mosque was restored several times and was used until three years ago when a massive earthquake hit the city of Bam and devastated the ancient Bam Citadel.

 

During their recent studies in the region, archeologists also succeeded in unearthing some invaluable potshards which, according to Sajadi, are more likely dated to two distinctive prehistoric and Islamic periods. She said that clay stamp seals belonging to different Islamic periods (651 AD afterwards) were prominent among the discovered shards.

 

In addition, about 105 prehistoric clay fragments were also unearthed during archeological excavations in Bam Citadel, most of which belong to the Bronze Age (about 2300 to 700 BC) which are very similar to those previously unearthed in Tal-e Eblis and Yahya Hill.

 

Located in the city of Bam, Kerman province, Bam Citadel was the biggest adobe structure in the world prior to the massive earthquake of 2003. On December 26, 2003, a severe earthquake, measuring 6.6 on Richter Scale, hit the area and devastated more than 80 percent of the Bam Citadel, which, according to historians, was built over 2000 years ago, more likely during the Parthian Empire (250 BC-226 AD). Since then, reconstruction of the Citadel received worldwide attention and experts from across the country and abroad were called in to help restore the Citadel to its old glory.

 

The Bam Citadel and its cultural landscape were registered in UNESCO’s World Heritage list in 2004 and were placed in the list of World Heritage in Danger in the same year by the international organization.

 

 

Soudabeh Sadigh

foreigndesk@chn.ir