The custom of telling bedtime stories is ancient. Over the ages, they have passed from one generation to another through oral tradition. Each generation has embellished them in new ways by adding or...
The land of Persia (also known as Iran) has been the center of several important empires throughout history. Between the 6th and 4th centuries BC, this was the land from which the mighty Achaemenids...
The Great Wal l of Gorgan, also known as the ‘Red Snake’, is a defense system located in the northern Iranian province of Golestan. This defensive wall dates to the Sassanian period, and is believed...
Buddhism, in the first few centuries following the death of the Buddha, spread from India mainly to China, Southeast Asia, and Central Asia. One place where its presence is less studied, in some ways...
Zarin Havewala is an emerging Indian internet entrepreneur who has unashamedly cashed in on a niche religious sector. While ‘Christian Mingle’ and ‘Jdate’ unite the lonely hearts of Christians and...
Iran’s Arg-e Bam, Bam Citadel, once stood as a pillar of longevity in the Middle East. Created upon the beginnings of the Achaemenid Empire (6th-4th centuries BC), and building on the commercial...
When you wander the tunnels of the underground city of Nushabad you are tracing your way back from modern day Iran to ancient history. The walls echo with the memories of the Sassanian period and...
God be merciful to both father and son! Mahmud utterly ruined the prosperity of the country [India], and performed wonderful exploits, by which the Hindus became like atoms of dust scattered in all...
An oasis of lush vegetation can be found in an arid region of Iran. The Fin Garden is regarded as one of the most beautiful gardens of its type, and it has been reported that this is the oldest...
Before the Persian Gulf existed, when the last ice age caused the ocean level to drop 90 meters (295 ft) below our current sea level, “100,000 km (62137 miles) of land in this part of the world was...
Persepolis is an ancient city that once served as the capital of the mighty Achaemenid Empire. Persepolis is the Greek name for ‘Parsa’, and both these names mean ‘Persian City’ or ‘City of the...
A recent sandstorm in Iran unearthed a series of structures that are believed to be part of an ancient city or necropolis. Initial analyses suggest it dates back to the early Islamic Middle Ages (661...
Shah Cheragh is a religious monument located in Shiraz, the capital of the Fars Province in the southern part of Iran. The story of its founding and its awe-inspiring decoration have made it one of...
Golestan Palace (which means the ‘Roseland Palace’ in Persian) is a palace complex that once was part of a group of monuments situated within the mud-thatched walls of Tehran’s Arg (citadel). The...
Once a lively outpost on the early Mesopotamian trade route, Godin Tepe now sits in ruins in Iran. Controversial archaeological excavations in the 1960s and 70s highlighted some of the rich cultural...
The Ziggurat of Jiroft, known also as the Konar Sandal Ziggurat, is an ancient monument located in Jiroft in the southern Iranian province of Kerman, a place that some say is Iran’s cradle of...
Archaeological records related to ancient drinks are quite rare, but they take us to realms of ancient life which were hidden for a long time. With new technologies and chemical analysis, scientists...
Arg-é Bam is a citadel located in Bam, a city in the Kerman Province in the south-eastern part of Iran. This citadel was built entirely out of adobe unbaked clay bricks, and it is often regarded as...
The city of Dezful, located in present-day southern Iran, once belonged to the ancient and powerful Persian Empire. One of its most iconic landmarks, the Dezful bridge, is the oldest still-standing...
The Behistun Inscription is an engraving located on the cliff of Mount Behistun (said to have had the meaning of ‘place where the gods dwell’ in antiquity). This inscription was written in three...
The Caves of Karaftu are a series of chambers that were carved into the cliff face of a mountain in the Kurdistan Province of Iran. The caves were formed naturally, but were modified by inhabitants...
Ardashir proclaimed himself king of Persis by 208 CE. His brothers protested this and Ardashir disposed of them. If his brother challenges were not enough, many local petty kings of Persis refused to...
Incredibly, the end of the Parthian Empire started with a fake wedding. Before the wedding took place, a civil war had been raging in Parthia between Vologases VI and his brother Artabanus V. After...
Kuh-e Alvand is Persian for Mount Alvand. Located in the Zagros mountains near the city of Hamadan in northwestern Iran at map coordinates 34.664167, 48.486667, the elevation of Alvand is 3,580...
