Iranian Rock Carvings May Be Among the Oldest Human Artifacts
Most rock carvings in Iran’s central regions are thousands of years old. However, some discoveries by Mohammad Naseri Fard, an Iranian archaeologist, may date back to forty thousand years. If this is the case, some of these paintings hidden among mountains and cliffs away from public view could be among the oldest human artifacts on Earth.
Dr. Mohammad Naseri Fard, who has spent years investigating and searching in the mountains and hills of Iran’s central regions, took a reporter from France’s news agency to the city of Khomein to show him several rock carvings, which in most cases depict mountain goats.
In 2008, Naseri Fard had also guided a Dutch couple passionate about archaeology to these same areas. Two Dutch experts reached the surprising conclusion that some of the paintings on stones are likely as much as forty thousand years old.
However, dating rock carvings is not an easy task and requires advanced tools and techniques. According to Naseri Fard, “sanctions have deprived us of technology.” Nevertheless, he remains hopeful that “with improving conditions,” new techniques and tools can be brought to the site to obtain more scientific, precise, and reliable information.
Attention of World Experts to Iranian Rock Carvings
France’s news agency adds that in Iran, rock carvings have not received much attention and generally sufficient research has not been conducted in the field of prehistory.
Dr. Mohammad Naseri Fard is an exception. He tirelessly traverses Iran’s mountains and deserts and through this method has discovered nearly 50,000 rock engravings throughout Iran over the years.
He says that he first became seriously interested in this type of research in 2002 when he found a carving in the city of Khomein. He says: “I was very excited, as if I had found treasure.”
Since then, Dr. Naseri Fard’s discoveries have been catalogued and indexed by the Bradshaw Foundation in Switzerland. This foundation, which operates in the field of archaeology and anthropology, has been able to draw the attention of many experts around the world to Naseri Fard’s research.
Common Heritage of Humanity
It is possible that the rock carvings discovered by Mohammad Naseri Fard date back to the earliest period when humans were gradually leaving their original birthplace, Africa.
Ms. Geneviève von Petzinger, an expert on prehistoric caves, speaks of the importance of Naseri Fard’s findings: “With the help of these discoveries, we can gradually draw a map that is full of dark and obscure points with greater precision.”
According to Ms. Petzinger, Iranian discoveries strengthen the assumption that humans possessed art before leaving Africa. Otherwise, how can one explain the striking similarities between some rock carvings in Iran, South Africa, Spain, or California?
According to this Canadian expert, Iran could be “a very important piece of a global puzzle.” Because this land “has strategic importance and people have always passed through it for migration toward the west or east.”
To precisely date Mohammad Naseri Fard’s discoveries, uranium-series dating technology should be used, which is more precise than Carbon-14 dating but much more expensive. According to Geneviève von Petzinger, “Naseri Fard should have access to large foreign laboratories and we hope to assist him in this regard.”
Source: RFI
