Italian archaeologists are helping unearth the ancient capital of the Persian Empire, Persepolis.
The Italian team, led by Professor Pierfrancesco Callieri of Bologna University, have helped Iranian colleagues discover a stone wall, probably part of a fortification, and the remains of a vase-making works.
Callieri and the leader of the Iranian team, Alireza Askari Chaverdi, on Tuesday described the recent finds as ''important''.
Until now no trace of the actual city of Persepolis had been found but only the remains of imposing palaces, which draw thousands of tourists each year to the site.
Also working on the Persepolis dig is the Italian Institute for Africa and the East, ISIAO, which has helped unearth the largest Bronze Age necropolis ever found in the Middle East, at Shahr-e-Sukhteh in south-east Iran.
A mission from the Italian culture ministry is meanwhile helping rebuild the ancient Iranian city of Bam, destroyed by an earthquake in 2003.
