By Nersi Ramazan-nia
Berkeley, California
February 1997
The Iranian
Last November I bumped into my friendSoroorGhanimati, who is a doctoral student in Near Eastern history and archaeologyat the University of California, Berkely, at a book signing ceremony.
Since by now she had been accustomed to my inquisitiveness, she hada quick answer to my question about her latest archaeological adventure."I went to the most incredible site in Lake Hamun, called Kuh-e Khwaja.Wait until you see these amazing pictures."
Here are the pictures
Intrigued, I arranged a time to discuss her trip and research. Thefollowing is a summary of that meeting.
Q: First, give the readers a brief background about yourself.
A: I was born in Tehran and studied three dimensional design at TehranArt University. After coming to the United States, I completed my graduatestudies in architecture and was a practicing architect for 15 years.
At the present time, I am preparing for my Ph.D. exams at U.C. Berkeley,in the history of Near Eastern art and archaeology with an emphasis onIranian architecture during the Late Antiquity (5th, 6th and 7th centuriesA.D.) and the Medieval periods (8th and 9th centuries A.D.).
Q: How did you hear about the Kuh-e Khwaja site and what exactlyis your area of research?
A: I became interested in the Kuh-e Khwaja complex in Sistan, whileconducting research on the art and architecture that characterized easternIran, on the southern branch, of the great Silk Road.
I have been working on this subject under the supervision of ProfessorGuitty Azarpay, Professor Emeritus at U.C. Berkeley's Department of NearEastern Studies -- the renowned Iranian and Central Asian art historian-- for the past four years . I was really fortunate to participate in thefield survey of the site in 1995.
The expedition was supported by grants from the University of California.I was a member of the expedition arranged by the Cultural Heritage Foundationof Iran.
Q: Where is the site located? Can you give us a brief descriptionof it?
A: The site of Kuh-e Khwaja is located 30 kilometers southwest of Zabolin the eastern part of Sistan-Baluchestan Province, very near the Afghanborder.
Themainruins of the complex are situated on the southeastern promontory ofa high hill overlooking the marshes of Lake Hamun in the delta where theancient Hirmand River's journey comes to an end. This solitary high hill,or small mountain, juts out of the lake and for most of the year is anisland.
The single path of access to the upper slopes of this hill is throughthe neglected ruins of this ancient town which was built on the only erodedpart of the vertical volcanic ring that isolates the upper reaches of thehill.
You can't imagine my state of excitement as I approached this mysteriousmound on my first trip. Ghosts of the citadels had only managed to slowthe invasion of the wind and sand. But still there is so much left to tellus.
The complex consists of a remarkable array of buildings and fortifications.For example, thecitadelknown as Ghagha-Shahr houses one of the only survivingfiretemples within a major monument of pre-Islamic times. This temple islocated on a terrace beyondhighwalls. It is protected by two forts, whose remains are known as Kok-eZal andChehelDokhtaran.
And as a structural complex with an intriguing range of Zoroastrianassociations, Kuh-e Khwaja represents a unique repository of still inadequatelydocumented architectural information, especially with reference to thetransition from Sasanian to Islamic architectural forms.
In addition, the site was decorated with large murals depicting variousfigurative motifs and mud reliefs of human and equestrian figures. Somefascinating surviving pieces are housed in various museums such as Iran-eBastan Museum in Tehran, New Delhi Museum, Berlin Museum, and the MetropolitanMuseum of Art in New York.
Farther up the hill and beyond the fortifications, on top of the plateau,other variousunrelatedstructures exist. Probably of the Islamic era. Their function, as ofyet is undetermined.
Q: What are the oldest known sources that refer to this site?
A: Locating "primary" sources is still an active area ofmy research. There are many sources, that through the process of deduction,one could infer references to Kuh-e Khawja.
But up to now, the only direct reference is to be found in the anonymousTarikh-e Sistan (History of Sistan) which dates back to the twelfthcentury AD. In there, mention is made of the shrine of Khawja Ali, a descendentof the Prophet Mohammad. The mountain takes its name from this shrine whichis located on the opposite side of the mountain, curiously, almost as faraway from the complex as possible.
Interestingly, on religious holidays and occasionally on the weekends,the tomb is visited by pilgrims who, in order to get to the summit andhence to Khawja Ali's tomb, have to pass through the deserted alleys, andclimb over the crumbling walls of the old town. Since it is through thecomplex that the rest of the hill is accessed.
The ruins themselves are referred to by the locals as Qal'a-e Kafaran(Fort of Infidels), and sometimes as Qla'a-e Sam (the Fort of Sam, thefather of Ferdowsi's mythical Rostam). Both labels attest to a lingeringpre- Islamic memory of the site.
Q: Tell us a little bit about the locals.
A: They are warm and friendly, and speak "Sistani". As anexample, they use the word "Sisto" instead of "Sistan".When they speak slowly, I can understand a word now and then, but whenthey speak at normal speed, forget it!
Primarily, like their ancestors they farm the fertile Hirmand Deltaand fish the lakes. In their villages, due to the heat, mud domes are usedextensively in the construction of their habitat, creating a harmoniousand organic landscape.
Thechildren, naturally, are the most curious and are always full of playfulquestions.
Q: In modern times, who has tackled this site?
A: In 1910, G.P. Tate of the British Boundary Commission made detailedobservations of the site. Then in 1915 Aural Stein was the first to conductsurface excavations. The results were published in hisInnermost Asiain 1916 and subsequently, a later addition was published in 1928.
He was the first to identify that the fire sanctuary was the principalarchitectural unit of the Kuh-e Khawja complex. The fire temple had beencovered extensively with wall paintings, which were discovered at the timeof the excavations and were taken to the museum of New Delhi.
Ernst Herzfeld (One of the persons who excavated Persepolis) inspectedthe site in 1925 and 1929. His findings were first published in 1932, andwith a radically different conclusion in 1941.
I should mention that Herzfeld had not published all of his documentsin 1941. These records, which have been part of the Freer Gallery's collection,became the basis of a new report by Trudy Kawami which was published in1987 (Metropolitan Museum Of Art Journal #22, 1987). Then in 1961, thesite was examined for a third time by Giorgio Gullini, who published hisresults in 1964.
I don't know about tackling, but in my case you could say I've grabbedhold of a corner of a shirt. It's really an enormous subject.
Q: What was the importance of this site?
A: In the first millennium A.D., the site was a major stop on the southernbranch of the Khorasan highway, the southern Iranian part of the Silk Road,providing shelter and protection to the passing caravans. Possibly it wasthe hub of local trade as well.
At first, Chinese raw silk was transported on this route. Later, fromthe second century A.D. onward, Indian goods such as precious stones, perfumes,opium, spices, and even eunuch slaves flowed in the direction of the West.In the opposite direction, Persian Gulf pearls, wheat, barley, turmeric,asafetide, and herbal medicines were carried by the caravans.
But aside from trade, Sistan, known as the birthplace of Rostam, hasvery strong associations with Zoroastarianism. In fact, according to Zoroastrianmythology, Lake Hamun was the keeper of Zoroaster's seed. And when theworld's end is at hand , three maidens will enter the lake, and afterwardswill give birth to theSaoshyants who will then be the "finalsaviors" of mankind.
According to the imminent Iranist Mary Boyce Lake Hamun was also a centerof pilgrimage. The only other known location for pilgrimage in Zoroastriantimes was Ray which is close to Tehran.
