INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
tourism chief has said.It has been demanded by the public and the media that the underground city becomes accessible to sightseers, IRNA
quoted Ali Khaksar as saying on Tuesday.Since last year, the tourism ministry has allocated funds for the restoration of this complex, as
well as completion of the base building and lighting, he noted.Over 25 billion rials ($84,000) have so far been spent on research,
exploration, restoration, organizing, lighting, and equipping the underground city of Samen, the official added.The ancient troglodytic
rock-carved rooms, interlinked tunnels, and corridors.The subterranean complex appears to have been first used for religious purposes, then
as a cemetery, and finally as a shelter during emergencies.The underground complex, located 400 km west of Tehran, is believed to be built
sometime between the fall of the Achaemenid Empire (550-330 BC) and the early Parthian era (247 BC-224 CE).Excavations at the site began in
2005 and are still going on
So far tens of well-preserved skeletons have been retrieved from its interconnected chambers.Iran is a haven for ancient troglodytic
architecture which is somewhat forgotten though they are filled with life and creativity
The northwest Kandovan village is one of the most famous examples of troglodytic architecture in the country; its ice-cream cone-shaped
which tens of experts, researchers, and academia discussed troglodyte-associated architecture, culture, and technology.Known in classical
Pitifully little remains from antiquity, but significant parts of the city center are given over to excavations
Ecbatana was the capital of Media and subsequently a summer residence of the Achaemenian kings who ruled Persia from 553 to 330 BC.Hamadan
has had many names: it was possibly the Bit Daiukki of the Assyrians, Hangmatana, or Agbatana, to the Medes, and Ecbatana to the Greeks
One of the Median capitals, under Cyrus II (the Great; died 529 BC) and later Achaemenian rulers, it was the site of a royal summer
palace.About 1220 Hamedan was destroyed by the Mongols
In 1386 it was sacked by Timur (Tamerlane), a Turkic conqueror, and the inhabitants were massacred
It was partly restored in the 17th century and subsequently changed hands often between Iranian ruling houses and the Ottomans.Sitting on a
high plain, Hamedan is graciously cool in August but snow prone and freezing from December to March
In summer the air is often hazy
Ali Sadr cave, Ganjnameh inscriptions, Avicenna Mausoleum, Hegmataneh hill, Alaviyan dome, Jameh mosque, and St
