The 17th national handicrafts exhibition inaugurated in Arak, Markazi province, on Thursday. The exhibition will run until November 23 in which 60 artists from different Iranian provinces will display their products in 150 pavilions.
Iranica
In Case You Missed Iran Before the Elamites
China Demands Return of Art Treasures From Stone Age To Jiroft Civilization China has ratcheted up pressure for imperial treasures to be repatriated, condemning overseas auctions of its relics and de- manding they come home. China is particularly eager to get back a series of bronze animal heads looted in 1860 by British and French soldiers when they burned down the Qing emperors’ summer palace in Beijing, Reuters reported. Little is known about Iran prior to the rise of the Elamite thrived from 5300 BC to 4000BC and pioneered farm- Mittani and the Hittites China’s drive to recover the heads has alarmed western mu- power. This is so because there remains a treasure-trove ing and irrigation and the use of copper. Slowly villag- Mittani was a feudal kingdom established in northern seums and auction houses, who are also sparring with Greece of pre-historic artifacts and long-buried cities yet to be es grew into cities and Eridu civilization extended into Mesopotamia (present-day Syria and Turkey) in the 14th and other nations over the return of historic art treasures. recovered. Only recently are Stone Age sites in Iran be- Northern Mesopotamia. The Eridu period was followed century BC by fierce warriors believed to be of Aryan A March auction of two heads ing excavated and observed. Therefore the knowledge of by the Uruk period which extended from 4000 to 3100 descent. This is one of the earliest instances when one from the estate of fashion icon historians and archeologists of pre-historic Iran is quite BC. This period saw the rise of one of the world’s old- hears of the Indo-European people who later founded the Yves Saint Laurent was disrupted scarce and is almost entirely based on modern discover- est cities from which Mesopotamia’s modern name Iraq Persian kingdom. after the winning Chinese bidder ies and findings of the last few decades. could have originated. There were big cities in northern Mittani power began to decline after the 13th century refused to pay for them, on patri- By pre-historic Iran, archeologists mean to the part of Mesopotamia before southern mesopotamia. BC and they gradually became vassals of the Assyrians. otic grounds. Iranian history from the date of Iran’s oldest archeologi- Writing was invented and large temples were built. Like the Mittani, the Hittites were speakers of an “These cultural relics should be These city-states returned to China,” Liu Zhenmin, were remarkable for China’s deputy permanent repre- their excellent or- sentative to the United Nations in ganization and gov- Geneva, told a meeting on the re- ernance. By 3000 turn of cultural property to coun- BC, the government tries of origin. of Uruk had become “We believe that such auctions run counter to the underly- powerful enough to ing spirit of relevant international treaties and UN resolutions, subdue other city- and are serious infringements of China’s cultural rights and states and give rise interests.” to the Sumerian Em- Chinese art, whether ancient or more contemporary, has pire. fetched record prices at international auctions in recent years, and at times defying the global economic downturn. Early Sumer Dy- nasty Sacrilege of History The Empire of But the official Xinhua news agency quoted Liu as saying Sumer began with that illicit appropriation of, and trafficking in, cultural prop- the Dynasty of Kish erty is a “sacrilege” to history and civilization. in around 3000BC. “While enjoying broad consensus of the international com- At this time there munity, protecting cultural heritage and promoting the restitu- were widespread tion of cultural property to the countries of origin are inalien- conflicts between able and fundamental cultural rights of the people of countries many city-states. of origin, as well as cultural responsibilities incumbent on all One city conquered governments,” Liu said. another, but soon Chinese art authorities are planning to catalog Chinese cal site discovered in morthern Iran and believed to be was overthrown by yet another city. By 2700 BC, pieces currently housed in overseas institutions, Chinese me- 800,000 years old up to the rise of the Elamites in around the focus seems to have shifted from Kish to Uruk. dia reported earlier this year. 3200BC when Iran becomes historical. The first part of The Uruk and the Ur dynasties ruled from 2700BC Many of the historic temples, treasures and art in China Iran’s pre-history would cover the Stone Age, reported to around 2500 BC when over lordship passed on were lost to war and to the wanton destruction of the Cultural Wikibooks.org. to Lagash. In 2334 BC, the last of the Sumerian Revolution, when many mainland Chinese scholars were also As recent as November 2006,a team of Iranian and kings was overthrown by Sargon I of Akkad. jailed, beaten or killed. Russian archeologists excavating in northern provinces of Ardebil, Gilan, Mazandaran and Golestan discovered Akkad Indo-Aryan language who ruled over Central Anatolia. 50 pre-historic sites, 30 of them in Ardebil alone, which Semitic Akkad established its supremacy over Meso- They rose to power in the 18th century BC and gradually Angolans Revive contained old Stone Age implements dating to sometime potamia and ruled the lands from 2334BC to around expanded their dominion over the Levant and West Asia between 800,000 and a million years ago. Another set of 2100BC. One of the early rulers of Akkad, Lugal-Zage-Si conquering Syria and clashing with the Mittani on the Tourism Hopes recent excavations by a joint Iranian-French team of ar- is credited with having established Akkadian supremacy borders of Mesopotamia. In 1274BC, they clashed with cheologists revealed Neanderthal sites in Iran, Egyptian forces at Kadesh in Syria. However, With a good climate, expansive deserted beaches, striking 40,000 to 85,000 years old. These recent dis- after many days the battle came to a dead-end Portuguese architecture and excellent bird watching, fishing coveries have been made in Kermanshah prov- with neither side able to vanquish the other. and surfing, Angola has plenty to offer tourists. ince and in Mahabad in Western Azarbaijan Since the end of civil war nearly eight years ago, the oil-rich as well as Niasar in Lorestan province where Assyria and Neo-Babylonia country has spent billions of dollars rebuilding and hopes that host- caves inhabited by pre-historic Neanderthals Assyria in northern Mesopotamia seems to ing the Africa Cup of Nations (CAN) in January will kick-start a were found. have come into prominence in the first half of lucrative tourism industry, AFP reported. the second millennium BC and to have con- Around 25 new hotels and guesthouses have been built in the New Stone Age quered most of Mesopotamia following the four host cities of Luanda, Cabinda, Lubango and Benguela, and The Neolithic Age is often associated with defeat of the Hittites. The Assyrian Empire the government is giving out glossy brochures of the country’s at- the growth of farming and irrigation as the extended its authority over the Levant and tractions. temperature and rainfall of the time was found parts of Iranian Kurdestan by the end of the “Angola has a lot of tourism potential,” tourism ministry spokes- to be suitable for agriculture. The Neolithic millennium. However, frequent rebellions woman Rosa Cruz told AFP. Age in Iran began in about 8000BC and ended in Egypt taxed its resources and left Assyr- “We have hopes that in the coming years we’re going to become by about 5500BC. It was characterized by the ia badly weakened. When new peoples, the like South Africa, Mozambique and Kenya which have lots of visi- growth of small settlements having 50-100 inhabitants over the Elamite kingdom based in southwest Iran. Sar- Persians and the Medes, migrated into modern Iran, tors. “We lived through 30 years of war and that means very few who lived either in houses built of unbaked brick or tents gon I, first ruled after the conquest of Mesopotamia, is they were able to attack and destroy the Assyrian civi- people came here, but now we’ve been living nearly eight years in or brush-shelters. However excavations are yet to reveal regarded as the greatest monarch of his dynasty. It is pos- lization. The Assyrians ruled over Mesopotamia until the existence of class differences and temples or other sible that he might have exercised his authority over Iran 602BC, when Asur-uballit, the last ruler of Assyrians special structures. proper as clay tablets belonging to his period make refer- was defeated by the Babylonians. The New Babylo- The Early Neolithic Period (8000-7300BC) preceded ence to copper being brought from Magan which most nians ruled much of Mesopotamia under kings like the use of pottery. The tools were mostly made up of scholars believe, is modern Makran. Sargon’s grandson Nabopolassar and Nebuchadnezzar until 539BC when flint, wood or fiber. Figurines of sheep, cattle, dogs, pigs Naram-Sin is credited with having led an expedition into Cyrus conquered Babylon and put an end to Mesopo- and people made from clay have been found. With the Magan and having taken its monarch captive. tamian independence. introduction of agriculture and expansion of villages, people started using clay to make pottery. Bracelets and Zayandeh-Rud Civilization pendants were often worn by the inhabitants. Tools for In the 5th millennium BC, just as city states were harvesting crops, butchering, working hides, and other emerging in neighboring Mesopotamia the Zayendeh tasks were made from flint, while grinding stones, mor- Rud civilization was flourishing along the banks of the tars, and pestles were made from limestone. Native pure river of the same name in Central Iran. Isfahan, Bakthiari copper from the central Iranian plateau was hammered and the Yazd provinces of modern day Iran lay at the into beads and pins. heart of the Zayendeh-Rud civilization. Isfahan is, in peace and the country is growing and developing.” many ways, regarded as one of the oldest cities in the With fewer than 100 hotels countrywide in 2008, Angola still The Rise of Mesopotamia world. Archeological research has also revealed the re- battles a lasting legacy of landmines, problems with water and Iran was directly affected by the rise and evolution of mains of an ancient buried city, which according to local energy supplies, and desperate poverty afflicting two thirds of the city-states in neighboring Mesopotamia as its southwest- lore, were believed to have been destroyed by war and population. ern provinces were under the Mesopotamian sphere of famine. The site of Sialk or Sialk Tappeh in the central English is not widely spoken, there are no private taxis, and for- influence. Between 5300BC when the Neolithic Eridu Iranian province of Isfahan is a typical example of Zay- eign visitors are still a novelty in the interior. culture originated till 539BC when Cyrus the Great of endeh-Rud settlement. Sialk also has the world’s oldest “Angola is not a holiday destination for beginners,” reads the Persia put an end to the last of the Mesopotamian king- ziggurat, built by the successors of the Zayendeh-Rud first English-language guide dedicated to Angola. doms, the frontier regions of Khuzestan and Kurdestan people, the Elamites in about 2900BC. However, the guide, which speaks enthusiastically about the formed a part of the Greater Mesopotamian culture. In country’s potential, adds: “Angola is keen to regain lost time and about 3200 BC, the Elamites, the first Iranian people of Jiroft Civilization things are changing incredibly fast - travelers shouldn’t waste an- any significance, established a kingdom in southwestern Recent excavations in the city of Jiroft in the province other minute if they’re keen to see its raw beauty.” Iran and ruled this region, sometimes as vassals, for over of Kerman in eastern Iran have revealed settlements be- Rafael Loureiro, an Angolan who runs a bed and breakfast from two thousand years. lieved to be around 5000 years old. Findings include the his farm in the mountainous Huila province agrees. oldest inscription in the world with characters in Elamite “There is so much to see here, from beaches to mountains to wa- Uruk script which predate those found in Susa by at least 300 terfalls”. The Samarra Culture first use irrigation in northern years. “Because of the war people do not know about Angola, but Mesopotamia at 5500BC. There were walls rounded the These discoveries have led many to believe that the Ji- sometimes that sense of the unknown adds to the excitement. villages. The Chalcolithic Ubaid/Obeid or Eridu culture roft Civilization may predate the Sumerian civilization.
Roman Ghirshman, The Arts of Ancient Iran From Its Origins To The Time of Alexander The Great (The Arts of Mankind, André Malraux and Georges Salles, Eds.) Stuart Gilbert and James Emmons, Trans
Feldman. Ambiguous Identities The Marriage' Vase of Niqmaddu II and The Elusive Egyptian Princess. Journal of Mediterranean Archaeology 15.1 (2002) 75-99