Hegmataneh

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Ancient Hegmataneh: A Glimpse into the Rich History of the Medes and Persian Empires

The archaeological remains of Hegmataneh, inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2024, offer a captivating window into the rich history of the Medes civilization and the subsequent Persian empires that ruled over this region. Situated in northwestern Iran, Hegmataneh's continuous habitation spans close to three millennia, making it a significant historical site that sheds light on the cultural, political, and economic developments of the ancient world.

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UNESCO Description of the World Heritage Site

The archaeological remains of ancient Hegmataneh are located in northwestern Iran. Continuously inhabited for nearly three millennia, Hegmataneh provides important and rare evidence of the Medes civilization in the 7th and 6th centuries BCE and later served as a summer capital of Achaemenid, Seleucid, Parthian, and Sasanian rulers.

UNESCO Justification of the World Heritage Site

Criterion (ii): Hegmataneh exhibits important evidence of the cultural interchanges among the cultures and civilisations of the Middle East in antiquity. The archaeological remains of town planning and architecture of the Parthian period, as well as the presence of artefacts made for the royal palaces in Susa and Persepolis, testify to the craftsmanship of the masters of Hegmataneh and the transfer of knowledge from Hegmataneh to other major ancient cities.

Criterion (iii): Hegmataneh, one of the ancient government seats in the Middle East, provides exceptional evidence of the cultural, social, economic and political developments in the Iranian Plateau in the 1st millennium BCE. The property provides important and rare evidence of the Medes civilisation and important evidence of the cultures and civilisations that successively occupied the city. Among these, the archaeological remains of the Parthian era present an exceptional testimony of the creative planning and architectural solutions developed through interactions amongst diverse ethnicities and religions.

Encyclopedia Record: Ecbatana

Ecbatana was an ancient city, the capital of the Median kingdom, and the first capital in Iranian history. It later became the summer capital of the Achaemenid and Parthian empires. It was also an important city during the Seleucid and Sasanian empires. Ecbatana was located in the Zagros Mountains, the east of central Mesopotamia, on Hagmatana Hill. Its strategic location and resources probably made it a popular site even before the 1st millennium BC. It is identified with the current city of Hamadan.

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