One of the five 6000-year-old kilns discovered at an ancient site in the Bolaghi Valley in Fars Province (Iran) has been safely transferred to the Pasargadae Research Center, which is located 14 kilometers away. The kilns were discovered by a German-Iranian team at a prehistoric settlement from the Bakun period (late 5th to early 4th millennium BCE).
     The team and several other groups are working on the Archaeological Rescue Excavations of the Bolaghi Valley, a project that has been implemented to study 130 archaeological sites before the reservoir of the Sivand Dam is filled and floods a large section of the valley, which is scheduled to take place in the near future but which has been repeatedly delayed.
       Two months of efforts were required to successfully remove one of the kilns, Parseh and Pasargadae Research Foundation director Mohammad-Hassan Talebian said. This is the first time in the world that an earthenware artifact with such a history has been relocated, Talebian noted.
       The first kiln, which has a height of over two meters, was removed from the ground and transferred carefully by a winch, after having been buttressed and packed with wood and foam.
 
Source: Mehr News (26 August 2006)