Written Heritage Research Center in Tehran will hold a meeting on “Pictorial Account of Tablets and Bas Reliefs in Khuzestan.”
Ancient rock art, inscriptions, tablets, stone sculptures, gravestones, bas-reliefs and rock reliefs in the southern province will be reviewed in a meeting Monday at the research center, according to the website of the center, Mirasmaktoob.ir.
It is the 106th meeting of the leading center organized in collaboration with the Association of Iranian Studies founded in January in agreement with the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology.
The association is a scientific body distinct from Iranology Society which was founded by the scholar of Iranian studies Ebrahim Pourdavoud in 1945. It also is independent of the Iranology Foundation that was created in 1997 and the International Society of Iranian Studies founded in 1967.
Philologist and author Mahmoud Jafari Dehqi, head of the board of directors of the newly-founded association will address the meeting. The other speaker is archaeologist and freelance writer Maliheh Mehdiabadi.
At the meeting, photographs and reports by historian Jalil Nozari will explain the current situation of rock art and inscriptions in Khuzestan. Nozari’s reports call for early attention to some of the works carved on soft rocks as they are susceptible to loss and damage.
The Association of Iranian Studies is located at No. 1182, Enqelab Avenue, near the intersection with Abu-Reyhan Street.
A major part of Khuzestan rock reliefs were carved by the Elamites, people of an ancient pre-Iranian civilization centered in the far west and southwest of what is now modern-day Iran, stretching from the lowlands of today’s Khuzestan and Ilam provinces as well as a small part of southern Iraq.
Elamite bas-reliefs provide in-depth information about the Elam civilization. About 20 rock-reliefs by Elamites have been identified in various regions including Koul-Fareh, Eshkaft-Salman and Shahsavar in Izeh County and Qaleh-Tol in Bagh-Malek County among other sites.
