The World loses an Eminent Archaeologist Dr. Zemaryalai Tarzi
Strasbourg, France ‑ The world has lost a prominent figure in the field of archaeology. Dr. Zemaryalai Tarzi, esteemed Afghan archaeologist and scholar, passed away peacefully on July 18, 2024, at the age of 85. Dr. Tarzi was internationally acclaimed for his extraordinary contributions to the study and science of Afghan archaeology.
Born on July 9, 1939, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Dr. Tarzi dedicated his life to uncovering and preserving the rich cultural history of his homeland. His academic journey began at the University of Strasbourg, where he completed his first Ph.D. under the mentorship of renowned archaeologist and historian Daniel Schlumberger. Dr. Tarzi's profound passion for archaeology and his homeland's heritage guided his lifelong and extensive research and numerous excavations throughout Afghanistan.
Dr. Tarzi was not only a great scholar but also a remarkable leader in Afghan archaeology. He served as the director general of Afghan Archaeology and Conservation of Historical Monuments, the director of the Afghan Institute of Archaeology, as well as the President for the Association for the Protection of Afghan Archaeology, funded by his daughter Nadia Tarzi in California. His studies of the Bamiyan paintings, his excavations at the site of Tape Shotor of Hadda in the 1970s, and later the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and National Geographic excavations at Bamiyan from 2003 to 2013, remain as seminal references in the field.
His undying dedication and activism for the protection of Afghanistan's heritage will be remembered alongside his scientific contributions, such as the last lecture he delivered on May 22 at the University of Strasbourg. A conference he amazingly managed to attend after his first near death encounter.In the words of his esteemed colleague and friend, Henry‑Paul Frankfort, “... so accurate, so well documented. He was happy then, and so were we. He will remain in our memory for all that and more.”
Dr. Tarzi received numerous awards and medals for his work, and recognitions from International dignitaries, to name a few such as former San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, and former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, underscoring his significant impact on the field of archaeology. The National Geographic documentary “The Lost Treasures of Afghanistan” is one of several media testaments that highlight some of his fantastic works.
He was loved by his family, students, colleagues and friends and countrymen, often nicknamed “the father of Afghan archaeology”.
Nadia Tarzi‑Saccardi
https://player.vimeo.com/video/206613367?api=1&autoplay=1
This is the story of a dragon, a young girl, and a camel...
Coming soon, the film !
At the hour when the sun rises, the two of them begin their journey: A young prince and his childhood friend, the son of the Vizir. What a joy it is to escape together for an adventure!
As they go along their way, they encounter a strange caravan, composed of a young girl, a camel driver, and his heavily loaded camel.
“Where are you going?” asks the Prince.
“I'm going to give the dragon his daily tribute”, sighs the camel driver, “a camel, a young girl, and a hundred kilos of bread. Tomorrow, the dragon will have devoured it all.”
“Even the camel?”
“Even the camel.”
The young boys continue along the road, walking in silence. After eating, they stretch out under a tree and sleep. Two birds appear in the Prince’s dreams.
“How can it be that that monster still lives?” the first asks in outrage.
“It would be so easy to kill him!” follows the second.
“One could do it simply by poking out his eyes with the forked branch on which we sit,” the first continues.
“Chlak, chlak!” screeches the second. And bam! Die, monster! Die scum!
At these words, the young prince opens one eye, then the other, and stretches. The magic branch is just within reach. He has barely grasped it when it shatters from the tree like glass, and breaks off in his hand with the sound of dry wood snapping.
The birds have sung through the end of the night, and now it is morning. A violent wind rises, and a roar tears through the silence, followed by a yowl, and then a sinister rumbling. The dragon is as hungry as a wolf. If he follows his hunger, he will eat the whole village.
“Yum, yum,” he coos as he discovers the two young boys, “I will feast like a king today!”
He stamps and drools and licks his lips. The terrified camel shakes to the left and right, making the bell around its neck ring. The young girl hides inside a basket.
The birds singing intensifies as the prince advances on the dragon, with his stick held along his spine. The dragon laughs at this small prince with his old branch. He lowers his head to sniff him and then! Chlak chlak! Without a second thought, the prince pokes out both eyes.
The dragon loses his balance, and his stumbling shakes the earth.
The freed camel bolts in the direction of the village with the princess bouncing on his shoulders.
The prince counts to ten, and the agonized cries cease. The dragon lies on the ground on his back, his four feet sticking up in the air. With one cut of a knife, his tongue is severed. The prince picks it up, a little stunned at himself.
The adventure continues…
Three weeks later, on the way home, the young prince and the son of the Vizir stop in a village at the foot of the mountain. They are received by the chief of the village, who is none other than the father of the rescued young girl!
While they tell the story of their adventure, the prince takes out the split dragon tongue from his knapsack.
The king realizes that this young man is none other than the intrepid hero who had killed the dragon. He didn’t know how to thank him. He orders a celebration to be held at once, and offers the prince his most precious gift...his daughter.
Without a second thought, they are wed. Hurrah! Long live the newlyweds!
The party is extravagant, the shouts of celebration reach the sky itself and dance among the clouds. Compared to the fires of joy, the stars themselves lose their shine.
But who had asked the young girl her opinion? No one.
Her face, once full of cheer, suddenly darkens.
Luckily, the story doesn’t stop here.
The next day, the son of the Vizir, the young prince, and the young princess once again take up their adventurous journey. They take a break under the birds’ tree. During his nap, the prince hears them say:
"Alas! The moon will poison the prince with a falcon's feather. “And when he is dead...”
“She will marry the love of her life, the falconer.”
Moon, of course, is the title for newlywed brides.
The prince wakes with a start. He tells his traveling companion about his dream.
“Let me sleep”, complains the son of the Vizir, who had eaten too much and was sleeping it off, “It’s only a dream...”
“Still!” insists the Prince, “I need you! This isn’t the time to snore!”
The sound of something falling wakes the princess up: it is the falcon who, struck by an arrow, has just fallen at her feet. The falconer is bound to the trunk with ropes.
“Don’t worry”, murmurs the young woman to the falconer, “I’ll do everything I can to save you.”
On saying this, she pulls out one of the falcon's feathers and slides it inside her dress.
The young prince is perplexed and his thoughts turn round and round.
He knows two things for certain:
One: He didn’t save the young girl because he was in love with her.
Two: She didn’t have to love him just because he saved her.
Love and gratitude are two very different sentiments.
What should he do? How should he decide?
If he kills the falconer, the young girl would surely seek vengeance. Or she would send herself into death to join her beloved, and that wouldn’t be any better.
And if he doesn’t kill the falconer, the princess would find means to flee with him. She would never let him trample on her happiness.
One way or the other, he, the intrepid hero who killed the dragon, would lose.
At that moment, a bell tolls. A cloud of dust rolls in the direction of the prince. It is the camel that he had saved, the camel whose feet are now pounding along the road.
“I'm truly happy to have found you again!” says the huge camel, its voice thick with tears, “I would like to thank you for saving my life! Forget your worries and strife, put on your traveling boots, and come with me! We’ll leave together, and I’ll show you the eight wonders of Afghanistan!”
The young prince, touched by the camel's tears (which are quite different to a crocodile's tears), accepts his new friend's proposition, and leaves the young girl, overwhelmed with gratitude, behind him. She unties the falconer and the two lovebirds leave to start their life together.
The prince is about to travel once more, dream once more and discover the world far beyond kings and chiefs. Life is long for one who understands the language of birds.
The sun sets, and all's well that ends well. Or at least, no worse than it began. They say that at the foot of the mountain, if one takes the time to look for it, one can see a dragon, transformed into rock. A few steps from the dragon, the falcon's blood has also metamorphosed, blooming into a desert rose. As for the Vizir’s son, they say that he still sleeps under the magic tree.
He had eaten too much praline. Or was it too many raisins?
Marie Nimier
(d’après les contes et légendes d’Afghanistan de Ria Hackin et Ahmad Ali Kohzad)
Translated by Margaret Trettin
Edited by Dr. Henry Jones & Dr. Jeanne‑Sarah de Larquie