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Over 30 film reels from the Qajar Empire have been discovered at Golestan Palace, dated to 1896–1907. They contain some of the earliest footage in Iran’s history, featuring Persian celebrations during that period, government officials in royal palaces, and the dawn of the country’s cinema.

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Over 30 film reels from the Qajar Empire have been discovered at Golestan Palace, dated to 1896–1907. They contain some of the earliest footage in Iran’s history, featuring Persian celebrations during that period, government officials in royal palaces, and the dawn of the country’s cinema.

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A 2,500-year-old Persian Acinaces, one of the few remaining royal swords from the Achaemenid Empire in exceptional condition. Made of pure gold and related to the era of Darius the Great, it was discovered in Hamadan , and is housed at National Museum of Iran.

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A 2,500-year-old Persian Acinaces, one of the few remaining royal swords from the Achaemenid Empire in exceptional condition. Made of pure gold and related to the era of Darius the Great, it was discovered in Hamadan , and is housed at National Museum of Iran.

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A historical jar from the Parthian Empire, dating to 247 BC–224 AD, has been discovered. It was accidentally caught in the nets of local fishermen in southern Iran while they were fishing in the depths of the Persian Gulf. Few Parthian jars have survived, making this discovery remarkable.

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A historical jar from the Parthian Empire, dating to 247 BC–224 AD, has been discovered. It was accidentally caught in the nets of local fishermen in southern Iran while they were fishing in the depths of the Persian Gulf. Few Parthian jars have survived, making this discovery remarkable.

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Near a royal tomb complex dating to the Western Han Dynasty , archaeologists discovered the remains of more than 400 sacrificed animals. This included the first complete skeletons of a giant panda and a tapir, to have ever been found in a tomb in China

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Near a royal tomb complex dating to the Western Han Dynasty , archaeologists discovered the remains of more than 400 sacrificed animals. This included the first complete skeletons of a giant panda and a tapir, to have ever been found in a tomb in China

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A Persian royal rhyton crafted from pure gold, widely regarded as the best-preserved example from the ancient world. Dating back to the Achaemenid Empire , it was discovered in Hamadan and is housed at the National Museum of Iran.

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A Persian royal rhyton crafted from pure gold, widely regarded as the best-preserved example from the ancient world. Dating back to the Achaemenid Empire , it was discovered in Hamadan and is housed at the National Museum of Iran.

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The Barber Cup and Crawford Cup, made in 50–100 CE, are the only 2 vessels carved from fluorite that are known to have survived intact from the Roman period. They were discovered during WWI by an Austro-Croatian officer who excavated a Roman tomb near the current Turkish–Syrian border

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The Barber Cup and Crawford Cup, made in 50–100 CE, are the only 2 vessels carved from fluorite that are known to have survived intact from the Roman period. They were discovered during WWI by an Austro-Croatian officer who excavated a Roman tomb near the current Turkish–Syrian border

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A historic discovery has been made in the Iranian city of Abdanan, where archaeologists have founded the lost region which Darius the Great called it in a inscription as "ABIRĀDŪŠ" , an area with three mines dug into mountain where the stones of his palace in Susa came from.

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A historic discovery has been made in the Iranian city of Abdanan, where archaeologists have founded the lost region which Darius the Great called it in a inscription as "ABIRĀDŪŠ" , an area with three mines dug into mountain where the stones of his palace in Susa came from.

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The bloody chair which Qajar king Naser al-Din Shah died on. After his assassination in 1896 by gunshot, royal companions brought him to Golestan Palace and placed him on this chair, where his blood remains clearly visible to this day.

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The bloody chair which Qajar king Naser al-Din Shah died on. After his assassination in 1896 by gunshot, royal companions brought him to Golestan Palace and placed him on this chair, where his blood remains clearly visible to this day.

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A six-foot marble statue of the goddess Athena has been discovered at the West Theater in Laodicea, an ancient city in southwestern Turkey. The style of the carving suggests that the sculpture dates to the reign of the Roman emperor Augustus, between 27 BCE and 14 CE

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A six-foot marble statue of the goddess Athena has been discovered at the West Theater in Laodicea, an ancient city in southwestern Turkey. The style of the carving suggests that the sculpture dates to the reign of the Roman emperor Augustus, between 27 BCE and 14 CE

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The Oxyrhynchus Papyri, discovered between 1896 and 1907 at an ancient rubbish dump near Oxyrhynchus in Egypt, is a collection of over 500,000 fragments of documentary, religious and important literary texts dating from the 3rd century BCE to the 7th century CE

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The Oxyrhynchus Papyri, discovered between 1896 and 1907 at an ancient rubbish dump near Oxyrhynchus in Egypt, is a collection of over 500,000 fragments of documentary, religious and important literary texts dating from the 3rd century BCE to the 7th century CE

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The Amber Room, an interior decoration of amber panels, gold leaf, and mirrors, constructed in the 18th century. Looted from the Catherine Palace by German forces during WWII and currently unrecovered. Estimated modern valuation exceeds $500M.

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The Amber Room, an interior decoration of amber panels, gold leaf, and mirrors, constructed in the 18th century. Looted from the Catherine Palace by German forces during WWII and currently unrecovered. Estimated modern valuation exceeds $500M.

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The remnant entrance portal from the earlier 10th century CE Jorjir Mosque, now part of the Hakim Mosque in Iran. The remaining portal of the ruined mosque was hidden for centuries and was accidentally discovered in 1957 when the wall of the Safavid mosque was washed away by rain

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The remnant entrance portal from the earlier 10th century CE Jorjir Mosque, now part of the Hakim Mosque in Iran. The remaining portal of the ruined mosque was hidden for centuries and was accidentally discovered in 1957 when the wall of the Safavid mosque was washed away by rain

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The remains of a man executed by the breaking wheel in the 16th-18th century CE, and found in 2014 in Austria. Only a few archaeological discoveries of breaking wheel victims have been documented, since their bodies were often left exposed to environmental influences over a long period

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The remains of a man executed by the breaking wheel in the 16th-18th century CE, and found in 2014 in Austria. Only a few archaeological discoveries of breaking wheel victims have been documented, since their bodies were often left exposed to environmental influences over a long period

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