What remains of an ancient Persian city is at risk of disintegrating because of a lack of conservation funding.
What's happening?
Persepolis in Iran is crawling with lichen, which is threatening the integrity of millennia-old monuments, Agence France-Presse reported via France 24. The country is a top heritage site and tourist destination, and Persepolis dates to the sixth century BCE.
The area became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979 and still stands despite countless assaults from both nature and humans. The lichen is an algae-fungus combination that dissolves minerals and penetrates stone surfaces by more than half an inch, according to the outlet.
Of the 3,000 species of lichen in Iran, 500-700 are growing on monuments. Their spread is "driven by industrialization, acid rain, and the harsh desert climate," AFP reported. Some of the lichen are older than 1,700 years.
"This is the most serious problem, especially for carvings on stones," Persepolis conservationist Shahram Rahbar said. "If we do nothing, these organisms could reduce these relics to dust within 50 to 100 years."
Why is this important?
Persepolis and other ancient Iranian sites are essential to understanding our history. One visitor told AFP that maintaining the sculptures, reliefs, and other monuments was "more important than our lives," while another said the area was a reminder that "Iranians created an ancient civilization."
Persepolis, like other natural and human-made wonders, was left to us by generations that came before, and they inherited it from their elders. It's now up to contemporary conservationists, scientists, and researchers to protect the sacred places for our children, their children, and beyond.
You can help by engaging in local initiatives, donating to important causes, and even just talking about shared values.
What's being done about preserving Persepolis?
It takes weeks to clean lichen from the monuments. The growths are covered "with a material," Rahbar said, and left for seven days. The process is repeated until the lichen is weak enough to be suctioned off.
But such projects are not fully funded. The $30 million allocated to develop a cultural heritage ministry in the country — some of the money was set aside for the restoration of historic and cultural monuments — was not distributed, Iran International reported in November.
Iran deputy minister of cultural heritage, tourism, and handicrafts Ali Darabi said it would cost $84 million per year to maintain registered historical monuments in the country, according to AFP. The media outlet said that monuments at Persepolis and other sites, however, each get just $220 in preservation funds annually.
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