Restoration experts have started working on a Parthian coffin discovered in the ancient city of Estakhr in the southern Iranian province of Fars.
![Ruins of ancient city Estakhr, Iran [Photo: IPAAT]](http://lh3.ggpht.com/_BfC6j03vee0/TSsV_sepxfI/AAAAAAAAJr0/SQwL0v6-WUg/s1600-h/16084392%5B5%5D.jpg "Ruins of ancient city Estakhr, Iran [Photo: IPAAT]")
“The coffin was sent to the cultural heritage site of Persepolis, where three experts have started the restoration project on the relic,” Parseh- Pasargadae Foundation expert Shahram Rahbar told CHTN.
“The coffin was found on October 21, 2010, and was broken before the excavation,” he added, saying that the coffin is not strong enough and is broken into more than 100 big and small pieces.
The team first placed the pieces to figure out the shape and size of the coffin helping restoration experts to build a metal support to carry the relic in its original shape.
In the next stage, they will clean the pieces and strengthen those which are extensively damaged.
According to Rahbar, the restoration project might last for nearly two months due to the large number of broken pieces as well as some missing parts.
Archeologists and restoration experts are studying the soil, skeletal remains and sediments inside the coffin.
The relic is the only post-Achaemenid coffin found at the Persepolis site.
An archeology team led by Erich Schmidt of Chicago University excavated the area from 1935 to 1939 which led to the discovery of similar coffins and other post-Achaemenid objects.
The team decided to transfer some of their findings to the US for further studies, but the ship carrying the relics was attacked by a submarine during World War II.
Source: Press TV [January 09, 2011]