Achaemenid Inscription
On November 14, 2007, a cuneiform inscription dating back to Achaemenid era was discovered on Kharg Island in Old Persian. The inscription is carved on a coral rock in Old Persian semi-syllabic cuneiform signs. Despite the usually well-ordered regular system of Achaemenid inscriptions, this one is in an unusual order written in five lines.
Translation
The not irrigated land was (became) happy
(with) my bringing out (water) Bahana wells
On May 31, 2008, the inscription was seriously damaged by unknown vandal(s).They destroyed it with a sharp object, such that about 70 percent of the inscription has been seriously damaged. The nature of the damage indicates that it was done deliberately.
Jean de Thévenot noted the presences of qanats on the island that would have provided ancient irrigation.
Read more about this topic: Kharg Island
Famous quotes containing the word inscription:
“The oft-repeated Roman story is written in still legible characters in every quarter of the Old World, and but today, perchance, a new coin is dug up whose inscription repeats and confirms their fame. Some “Judæa Capta,” with a woman mourning under a palm tree, with silent argument and demonstration confirms the pages of history.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)