Esmaeil Yaghmaei
Esmaeil Yaghmaei is an Iranian archaeologist and writer. He has led numerous archaeological excavations across various regions of Iran.
Biography
Born to a cultural family, Esmaeil Yaghmaei was born on September 18, 1941, in Tehran. His family origins trace back to Khur, a small village in Khur and Biabanak County, Isfahan Province. He completed his elementary and high school education at 15th of Bahman School, earning his diploma in 1958. He later pursued higher education at the Faculty of Archaeology and Art History at the University of Tehran, where he obtained a master's degree in archaeology in 1975.His father, Habib Yaghmai, was a prominent Iranian journalist.
Archaeological career
Yaghmaei joined the Department of Archaeology and Folk Culture at the Ministry of Culture and Arts in May 1967 as a research assistant. His involvement in archaeology expanded over the years, leading him to participate in and supervise numerous excavations. His first fieldwork experience was in Haft Tappeh, Khuzestan, between winter 1967 and spring 1968. Before the 1979 Iranian Revolution, he contributed to excavations in sites such as Chogha Gavaneh in Eslamabad-e Gharb, Shahr-e Sukhteh, Jafarabad Mound in Susa, Sheikh Tappeh in Urmia, the Achaemenid palace of Charkhab in Borazjan, and the Sassanid palace complex in Bishapur.Yaghmaei continued his work in archaeology, supervising excavations at sites including Kalako Mound in Gorgan, the Mounds of Jews and Manba Ab in Kangavar, and the Achaemenid palaces of Sang-e Siah and Bardak-e Siah in Dashtestan. Notably, he led the first post-revolution archaeological survey in Chogha Gavaneh in the autumn of 1979 and spring of 1980.
From winter 1982 onward, Yaghmaei led independent excavations at sites such as Arjan in Behbahan, Shoghab Cemetery in Bushehr, Qalaychi Mound in Bukan, Shahzavar Cemetery in Firouzkouh, Semnan Fortress, Tang-e Takab in Behbahan, Kelak Cemetery in Karaj, and various other historical locations across Iran. His final major excavation took place in spring 2005 at the Achaemenid palace of Bardak Siah.
Publications
Yaghmaei has authored several books and articles on Iranian archaeology, including:Archaeological Surveys in the Iveh Region Imamzadehs of Tehran, Rey, and ShemiranShush, ''The Fifteenth CityThe Bardak-e Siah PalaceOrnamental Motifs in Ancient IranThe Worship of Mithra in IranThe Castle of ColonialismSafe ZonesThat Palace of JamshidAdditionally, he has written memoirs reflecting on his experiences in archaeology and Iranian history, including A Thousand-Year-Old Tresses: Memoirs of an Archaeologist and When I Was a Child...''. The latter recounts his childhood memories, intertwined with historical events of 1950s Iran, such as the imprisonment of Mohammad Mosaddegh, the bread riots under Hakim al-Mulk, and the cultural scene of Tehran during that period.