PHOTOS: On the verge of oblivion? Meet stone lions deserted in southwest Iran

PHOTOS: On the verge of oblivion? Meet stone lions deserted in southwest Iran ۳/۲۹/۲۰

Source: Tehran Times; Photos by Alireza Mohammadi, ISNA

Some cultural heritage enthusiasts say that hundreds of stone lions, which were placed on top of the tombstones of brave and courageous people of Bakhtiari tribe in the past, are now on the verge of oblivion and even fading away.

Bakhtiari nomads regard such stone statues, locally called 'Bard Shirs' as a symbol of bravery, valor, and characteristics like adroitness at hunting and shooting in war as well as horseback riding on top of the gravestone of that group of people.

Scattered across certain graveyards in Chaharmahal-Bakhtiari province, southwest Iran, these statues remind men who enriched the history of their tribes in a mythical form by their names and departed this life.