Studies have been conducted by an archeological team to mark out the bounds and suggest a buffer zone for Sassanid-era ruins known as Tal-Sefidak in Fars Province following threats of intrusion by farmlands.
The project was authorized by the Research Institute for Cultural Heritage and Tourism and co-directed by Samira Jafari and Mohammad Hassan Paknejad.
According to Jafari, the delineated territory would include all the areas in which archeological remains can be found.
In other words, "no traces of the ancient objects should be found outside the boundaries whether on the surface or below the ground", she said, RICHT's official news portal reported.
This is especially important in areas that overlap with valuable properties such as lands officially designated for residential or agricultural use.
Tal-Sefidak is located in the suburbs of the city of Hajiabad whose properties are rising in value, consequently increasing the risks of encroachment into the historical zone.
Hajiabad was formerly a village in Darab County but was later upgraded to a city in the 1990s and became the capital of the new Zarrindasht County.
As Jafari explained, the first stage of the project involved the preparation of a topographic map of the region and its surrounding lands to an approximate radius of 300 meters to identify any potential man-made phenomenon.
"In cooperation with the local office of Iran's Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization, land owners were persuaded to allow the digging of 22 pits where objects were likely to be discovered," she said.
Based on cultural heritage laws, the zone inside the defined borders will be protected from intrusion.
History of Tal-Sefidak
The ancient remains were first unearthed in 1976 when parts of the northern lands of the then village of Hajiabad were being flattened in an agricultural development project.
The discovery of numerous pieces of plasterwork reflected the archeological importance of the area. Therefore, the first excavations were carried out in 1977 by an archeology team headed by late Masoud Azarnoush.
"The research project in a structure which was later named Hajiabad's Arbabi House [a manor house] helped salvage a precious collection of Sassanid art and architecture from total destruction by ignorant residents of the region," Jafari said. The findings were later published in a book titled "The Sasanian Manor House at Hajiabad".
However, in the absence of borders to mark the site's limits, farming practices in the surrounding lands continued to pose new threats. The ruins of Tal-Sefidak are leftovers of a Sassanid house which is believed to have belonged to aristocrats of the time based on the style of its structure and ornaments.
The property constituted three separate parts with a building and garden in each.
Wall paintings such as a picture of a broken cross and unique plasterwork such as statues of goddesses and a bust of Shapur, a Sassanid king, were among the magnificent items found in the site.
Experts believe that the house was built or renovated around 363 A.D.
"Although only the walls, shelves and plinths of the terrace columns have remained, the discoveries can significantly help broaden our knowledge of art, architecture and religions of the Sassanid," Jafari said.
