Alignment from Rennes

In 2005 as part of the investigation of the “navigational system” described in “visigothic treasure” I followed one of the extension lines to see to where it might lead. The line appeared to pass through Marv Dasht when I zoomed in it seemed closer to Vali-Asr and finally I saw a strange five pointed star.

Strange Star

I had 3D buildings switched on in google earth and soon realised I was looking at the ruins of Persopolis and that the strange star must be the campsite for the celebration of 2500 years of the Peacock crown. If it seems incredible that I scanned half way round the earth and stumbled across this remarkable find, it really is incredibly easy to do in google earth. However, there may be other alignments that I simply missed because they do not show as clearly. I can remember thinking as i saw that the line ran accross Iran that “Persepolis must be somewhere round here” .

Zarathustra

Moving in it was possible to see that the star consisted of five driveways, a central water feature and ten rows of tents. I remembered that Maurice had said the the very layout of the camp was offensive to the Islamic faith. Could it be the choice of the five fingered symbol? I remembered that the pentacle was one of the symbols of used in the Persian religion -Zoroastrianism, whose prophet’s name Zarathustra means “gold star”

Parisienne Model

I now went back to research the celebration which Maurice had discussed with me all those years ago. It was a world scale project, and the Shah deliberately wanted it to be a world scale project, to attract the attention of the world.

Once the decision had been taken not to build a hotel but to create a tent city instead the world’s experts in temporary accomodation were consulted and as Maurice had told me, the lead contract was given to Jansen.

The installation had been inspired by the “Field of Gold” the camp built by Francoise I of France to entertain Henry VIII in 1529.

Reality

My own research has failed to locate anything which might have been buried under the area used for the camp, indeed it would appear that the treasury is located to the rear of the complex well away from the campsite. the treasury has twice been excavated by US universities so its location has been well identified. one would imagine that any “treasury gardens” would have been adjacent to the treasury It is possible however that the layout copied some feature which was found on the site no that there were other gardens on the site of the camp.

The Tents

The individual tents even if they were inspired by the “field of gold took the form of a copy of the tents used by Persian kings as they moved around the country. The attendants appointed to attend to the needs of the attendees where also clothed in copies of ancient costumes.

The Shah

The Shah, Queen Farah and their children arrived wearing western clothes, which are probably less elaborate that would have been worn by many other heads of state for such an occassion. the presence of military cannot be missed and is indicative of the substantial security surrounding the celebration. The Mujaheddin and Fedayeen had threatened to submerge festivities in a “sea of blood” and in the month before the celebration the shah’s police arrested 1500 suspected terrorists without trial.

The Tomb of Cyrus

Festivities commented with a visit to the tomb of Cyrus I. A major identifying symbol of the whole celebration was the Cyrus scroll. A statement of how Cyrus felt he should rule and which which identifies Cyrus as an enlightened ruler The Shah has been accused of misquoting the scroll claiming, among other things, that the scroll announced abolition of slavery, and the end of religious discrimination and the establishment and the establishment of minimum wage for all of his people and asylum the detractors. Islamic clerics criticised Honouring Cyrus in any way, describing him as a homosexual depot.

The Parade

The parade was a march past of the iranian army dressed in ancient traditional costume. here the splendor of the setting can be seen. however this photograph is of the secondaty viewing area occupied by those who organised the celebration.

Curves of her Body

This second view shows the Shah, Queen Farah and their son taking the salute. dressed more regally than when they arrived they are still wearing essentially western clothes. much was made by islamic clerics exposing “the curves of her body” to public display.

The Banquets

Several sumptuous meals were served. Maxim’s publicity again attracted attention, claiming they had served a “ton” of caviar and pheasants stuffed with foie gras. some newspaper correspondents were excluded from the celebrations. Possibly this was because of their political affiliations more likely because of a cap placed on the number of attendees to assist in the imposition of strict security. The reason mattered not, these correspondents spent their time visiting local villages and them compared the humble meals they had seen there with lavish fare served at the banquets.

The Aftermath

It was regarded by many as the greatest public relations exercise of all time. senior political commentators felt that the publicity and the rasing of Iran’s profile was worth far more than the celebration had cost. Such statements simply fanned the flames of adverse publicity. it could have been one of the most famous events in history but now it is almost unknown. when the islamic revolution occurred only eight years later the clerics erased it from the collective memory of their own citizens. there was even talk of bulldozing the whole of the Persepolis site. In fact they pretended Persepolis did not exist. The camp was allowed to deteriorate until today all that remains is the concrete pads and the skeleton of the tents.

What is remarkable is that because the foundations still exist, using google earth, the layout and any symbolism it might contain is clearly visible and can be subjected to analysis.