History Features

After battling Rome for centuries, the Parthians had defeated Alexander the Great’s successors and had conquered most of the Middle East and southwest Asia.   They controlled the legendary Silk Road. 

They also mined for salt.

And one day 1700 years ago a man was there in the heart of this empire.  A miner.  Maybe he was working amongst his own townspeople, so the Zanjan hole in the ground which was to become his grave was the most familiar site in the world to him.  Maybe though he came from its furthest reaches - Turkey, Afghanistan, Pakistan.. Russia.. And he was among strangers. 

He had long hair and a beard.  He was wearing his leather shoes and woollen cloak – it was probably cold in the mine.  The salt used to get in his ears, but he had a stick to clean them with. 

He knew somebody with short red hair, by sight as least.   And he must have seen two other men that day, perhaps they were his friends.  Apart from their faces, the last things he saw before he died were his tools - a knife, grind stones, sling stones and ropes. 

What was he thinking about that day?  He probably didn’t realise it was going to be his last.  If he had any comprehension of what two millennia meant, could he have imagined that he and his companions along with the minutia of their lives would survive until then?  That he would travel 3000 miles to a city which barely existed at the time, but would become world-famous? That he would be important – almost unique?

But that’s what happened because the salt which was to kill him and many of his co-workers in some unknown catastrophe proved also to preserve them. 

Mummy in a salt matrix

Half of his mummified body was found 10 years ago, attracting international attention. However, at that time archaeologists were unaware that there were others. They have since recovered the parts of three, including the red-haired man, within the last seven months. The preserved corpses of more remain to be disinterred. 

Small samples of these three have been brought back to The School of Geography, one of the oldest departments of geography in the country by Dr Morteza Fattahi for further study.  The centre has recognised international leadership in research. 

The latest news is that the red haired man has been separated from his salt matrix at his new home in a historical building in Zanjan and is taking care by Mr Alli the regional manager of saltman project.

Keep an eye on Dr Fattahi’s website for continuing updates.