Iranian archeologists are about to embark on an exploration project in the Marvdasht plateau (Iran) in a bid to discover relics of architecture and recognize its inhabitants’ lifestyles. Rahmat-Abad mound is one of the most historically significant settlements in Marvdasht, measuring 115 m in length and 75 m in width and 4.5 m in height. It is now exposed to vehicles that pass along it on a busy road in the southern province of Fars.
     "Since it is the most important mound in the area and quite close to Persepolis, any exploration in Rahmat-Abad could possibly render answers to our raft of questions on the way people lived their lives and built their dwellings," said Mohammad Hassan Talebian, head of the Pasargadae and Parse project. Iranian archeologists have already discovered priceless artifacts during their geophysics surveys and now they want to unearth them.
      Archeological excavations have shown that millenniums before Darius decided to choose the plains of Rahmat Mount for the construction of the majestic Persepolis Palaces, civilized populations had been living in the Marvdasht Plains.

Source: Payvand (12 October 2004)