TEHRAN, Jan. 12--With only 20 days left to the deadline set by UNESCO for modification of Jahan Nama Tower in Isfahan, workers recently resumed the job of reducing the height of the tower, reported CHN.
However, in view of the short time to the deadline which is February 1, 2007, and the amount of work still left to be done, there is not much hope of completing the job by the set date.
According to Reza Dolatyar, director of Pardisan Company which is in charge of the project, only some initial works such as setting the scaffolds have been completed in this phase of the project but the process for removing concrete blocks has not been started yet.
In its last session held in Lithuania on July 2006, UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee gave Iran a 6-month period to bring the tower to the specified level or else risk the exclusion of Naqsh-e Jahan Square from UNESCO’s list of global heritage sites and its placement on the list of Endangered World Heritage.
Given that the project has just been restarted, and in view of the subtlety in implementing this phase of the project, it requires several months to be completed and will not be finished by February 2007 which is the deadline set by UNESCO, said Dolatyar.
In 2005, UNESCO determined that the height of the Tower should be reduced by 12 meters on the eastern side and 24.48 meters on its western side. In order to observe UNESCO’s requirement in this project, two more stories of Jahan Nama Tower should also be removed.
Located on the west of Naqsh-e Jahan Square, Jahan Nama Tower still spoils the aerial buffer zone of the Square which contains a complex of monuments registered on UNESCO World Heritage list in 1979.

TEHRAN, Jan. 12--One of the problems facing historical sites across the country is the threat posed by illegal excavations.
Expressing this view, director of the excavation team for the historical site of Gohar Tapeh in Mazandaran province, Ali Mahforouzi said that the province is not immune to the problem given its special conditions, ISNA reported.
“We are trying to do away with the evil phenomenon by identifying historical monuments and stationing guards in them,“ he noted.
Mahforouzi further stated that before the establishment of cultural heritage protection units in the country and the province, there were more problems for historical monuments, particularly those located in the north.
Northern part of the country was the focus of attention because it was the settlement area of certain ethnic groups from the first and second millennia BC and home to many artifacts, he said.
He further said that most of the antiques from the first millennium BC and some of those belonging to the second millennium BC are scattered in the mountainous regions.
Given numerous problems before and after the 1979 Islamic Revolution including lack of funds and shortage of forces, profiteers seized the opportunity and unearthed illegally a number of the artifacts, he complained.
Of course part of the problems was resolved following the formation of protection units and activating NGOs, he said, adding that despite the efforts of officials, desirable conditions have not yet been created.
Accurate statistics on illegal excavations are not available but one cannot deny its prevalence in the country, he concluded.

Iran is one of the most important countries in terms of ancient and Islamic artifacts.

TEHRAN, Jan. 12--A cultural heritage researcher said that the process of research studies in cultural heritage in Iran is too weak and this has had a negative impact on primary sources available for university students to conduct research.
Abbas Molla-Esmaili told ISNA that while Iran is one of the most important countries in terms of historic, Islamic and ancient monuments, it is also one of the most problematic countries in the fields of research and documents, particularly giving references about ancient edifices.
“Any researcher, whether a university student, an academician or one who is interested in history and cultural heritage or someone who seeks information in Persian texts will certainly face problems,“ he added.
He pointed out that Iran is a country that has wind and water mills, historic caravanserais, baths, mosques, bridges and holy shrines. However, he noted that shortage of written accounts about these historic edifices is quite evident.
“One of the problems facing researchers of cultural heritage is the absence of specific research duty. University students also lack the motivation to conduct research on cultural and historical topics,“ the researcher added.
Molla-Esmaili is currently writing a book titled ’Appearance of Iran’s Cultural Heritage’.
“Only few people are after doing research in Iran. Even these few feel reluctant to spend their money and time on doing research in the field of cultural heritage. Moreover, publishers are unwilling to publish works of cultural heritage researchers and the researcher has to pay the costs himself.“

TEHRAN, Jan. 12--An author and journalist said that writers should not have high expectations about prizes presented in various events.
Speaking to Mehr, Ahmad Gholami further said that the awards are not aimed at resolving their economic problems; rather they seek to highlight selected works and introduce them to the public.
“Awarding of prizes should always be made on the basis of principles and they should also focus on the simplicity and quality of the works,“ he said.
Gholami further said that the awards are not instituted to revolutionize the writers’ lives economically.
In western countries economic growth of the lives is higher and for the same reason the value of the prizes, including the Nobel Prize, improves the living conditions of the winners, he said, adding that it is a mistake to compare foreign awards with Iranian prizes.
If the prizes are substantial, they will gain greater credibility among the people, he said.
This will help both the writers present their works in a wider scope and publishers to support the writers, he noted.
Commenting on the support of press for literary prizes, he said that since some sections of the newspapers are supervised by the government, there is always a gap between them and literary currents.

A sample of a golden Berlin Bear award stands between casts of the statuette for the upcoming Berlinale International Film Festival.

BERLIN, Jan. 12--Hollywood screenwriter and director Paul Schrader will chair the 57th Berlin International Film Festival jury including stars such as Gael Garcia Bernal and Willem Dafoe, said AFP.
The jury, which chooses the winners of the Berlinale’s coveted Golden and Silver Bear top prizes, will also include Palestinian actress Hiam Abbass, German actor Mario Adorf, Hong Kong film producer Nansun Shi and Danish film editor Molly Malene Stensgaard.
The Berlinale, running February 8 to 18, ranks just below Cannes and alongside Venice among Europe’s premier film festivals.
Schrader, 60, is best known for directing ’American Gigolo’ which propelled Richard Gere to stardom. He is also a frequent collaborator with director Martin Scorsese and wrote the screenplays for ’Taxi Driver’, ’Raging Bull’ and ’The Last Temptation of Christ’.
Dafoe most recently starred in ’Inside Man’ and ’Spider-Man’, while the multilingual Mexican actor Garcia Bernal can currently be seen in Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu’s ’Babel’, which is already generating Oscar buzz.
Abbass appeared in the controversial, critically acclaimed picture ’Paradise Now’ and Steven Spielberg’s ’Munich’.
Adorf, one of Germany’s most popular actors, starred in Volker Schloendorff classics such as ’The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum’ and the film based on Guenter Grass’s novel ’The Tin Drum’.
Nansun Shi was described by Variety magazine as one of the world’s 50 most influential independent filmmakers. She produced the Hong Kong blockbuster ’Infernal Affairs’ and Tsui Hark’s martial arts thriller ’Seven Swords’. Stensgaard has worked closely with compatriot Lars von Trier on films including ’Dancer in the Dark’, ’Dogville’, and ’Manderlay’.
Meanwhile, Niki Karimi, the famous Iranian actress, director and script writer, has been selected as a jury member for the competition section of the event.
Niki Karimi has acted in 21 films, many of which have been acclaimed in domestic and foreign festivals.

HAMEDAN, Jan. 12--A blind young man from Hamedan has created beautiful statues using his God-given talent that has astonished all visitors.
According to the Persian daily ’Iran’, Khaleq Shahrokhi, who is from Nahavand, Hamedan province, was born in a family of art enthusiasts.
He started painting with oil color with the help of his family since childhood.
He did not learn the art from any artist and has designed excellent works only by using his talent under the guidance of his brother, who is also a well-known artist. The blind artist has become so popular that some of his works have been sold in Arab countries.
He also learnt carpet designing at the same time he was painting with oil color and became one of the acclaimed carpet designers in the province.
When he was 26, his eyesight began to fail due to diabetes and after a while he became completely blind.
However, he started a new life with self-confidence. Initially, he started to play flute and reached the peak of perfection in the field. However due to financial problems, he turned to sculpture.
Shahrokhi maintains that he creates the raw materials for his job in an innovative manner. Statues of coppersmith and musicians are among his best works.

LONDON, Jan. 12--British royal drama The Queen leads the pack at this year’s Orange Bafta film awards, after receiving 10 nominations.
According to BBC, Dame Helen Mirren is nominated for best actress, and Stephen Frears is named in the best director category.
Bond film Casino Royale picked up nine nominations, including best actor for Daniel Craig, while fantasy film Pan’s Labyrinth is up for eight awards.
The winners will be announced at a ceremony at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London, on February 11.
For the first time in six years, the awards will not be hosted by comedian Stephen Fry, who stepped down last year. His replacement is yet to be announced. While one film often dominates the Baftas, this year sees several movies picking up five or more nominations, including low-budget independent film Little Miss Sunshine and comedy The Devil Wears Prada.
“It’s very widespread,“ said film critic Mark Kermode. “Little Miss Sunshine gets more recognition than expected. It’s a very open field.“
However, spoof documentary Borat failed to receive any nominations, despite being widely tipped for Bafta success.