Ambiguity surrounding the discovery of a mummified body in the shrine of Abdul Azim
While the head of the Cultural Heritage Committee of the Tehran City Council had announced that the body discovered during the construction operations to expand the shrine of Abdul Azim may belong to Reza Shah Pahlavi, the shrine of Abdul Azim in the city of Rey denied this news.
While the head of the Cultural Heritage Committee of the Tehran City Council had announced that a body discovered during construction operations to expand the shrine of the "Abdol-Azim Hassani Shrine" may belong to the first Pahlavi (Reza Shah Pahlavi), the Abdul-Azim Shrine in the city of Rey denied this news.
The conservative Fars News Agency wrote: "While some people claim without any evidence that the remains of the body discovered in the city of Rey belong to Reza Khan Pahlavi, officials at the shrine of Hazrat Abdul Azim stated that the discovered body is not a mummy but rather belongs to a deceased person in the old cemeteries surrounding the shrine."
Mustafa Ajarloo, deputy director of publicity and communications for the Abdul Azim Shrine, said: "Since there was a cemetery near the shrine, it is a natural occurrence for a body to be found in the area, and it is clear that in the implementation of any development plan, there is a possibility of discovering buried remains of bodies. In this regard, the relevant authorities buried the remains of the body as soon as they were found according to Islamic rules, and all the rumors that have been circulating in cyberspace about the body being a mummy are devoid of truth."
Early rumors
The head of the Cultural Heritage Committee of the Islamic City Council of Tehran said in an interview with ISNA news agency on Monday (April 23) that the body discovered during the construction operations to expand the shrine of the "Abdol Azim Hassani Shrine" may belong to the first Pahlavi (Reza Shah Pahlavi).
According to the head of the Cultural Heritage Committee of the Islamic City Council of Tehran, the mummified body was found during excavations in the western part of the courtyard of Shah Abdulazim Hassani, and "the excavation has been stopped due to the discovery of this mummified body so that the relevant authorities can conduct a more detailed investigation."
Khalilabadi also added: "Some suggest that the body belongs to the first Pahlavi, who was brought to Tehran in a mummified form and buried in the shrine of Abdolazim Hassani."
The cultural heritage official stressed that whoever the body belongs to, it is a heritage item because it has been mummified and must be preserved. He also noted, "Of course, the final opinion must be given by heritage and forensic experts to see who this body belongs to."
Reza Shah died of a heart attack in Johannesburg on 25 August 1944. Reza Pahlavi's body was taken to Egypt after his death in Johannesburg. His son, Mohammad Reza Shah, then brought his father's body back to Iran with ceremonies and buried him in the vicinity of the Abdul Azim shrine in the city of Rey.
The tomb of Reza Shah Pahlavi was destroyed after the 1979 revolution by Sadegh Khalkhali, the then Islamic ruler. Khalkhali himself mentioned the destruction of Reza Shah's tomb in a section of his memoirs.
Source: DW
