MNA � The 60th anniversary of Iran-Italy collaboration in cultural heritage and archaeology in a conference, which was held on Sunday at the National Museum of Iran in downtown Tehran.

The 60th anniversary of Iran-Italy collaboration in cultural heritage and archaeology kicked off on Sunday in the presence of Iran�s Tourism Minister Ali-Asghar Mounesan, Italian Ambassador to Iran Giuseppe Perrone, Deputy of Tourism Minister Mohammad Hassan Talebian, and the Director of National Museum of Iran Jebrael Nokandeh.

Today, an archaeological exhibition dedicated to the 60th year of the partnership was inaugurated at the museum. The exhibition will be running through December 1.

In the opening ceremony of the exhibition, Jebrael Nokandeh said that Iran and Italy have had cooperation in the cultural field for more than half a century.

There are 52 cultural heritage cooperation topics along with 60 joint works of Italian-Iranian exploration at the Iran-Italy cooperation exhibition, he added.

Italian Ambassador to Iran Giuseppe Perrone, for his part, said that the exhibition is of great importance to the excavations of Iran and Italy�s archaeological information.

In the exhibition, the 60 years of archeological cooperation of Iranian and Italian is celebrated, he added, saying that the collaboration of two countries will continue in the future.

Italy�s cooperation with Iran in the field of archeology began in 1959 and has continued since then, he noted.

The cooperation between the two countries expanded in 1979 in the field of archeology and cultural heritage by operating several joint projects to preserve the monuments, Perrone highlighted.

An important highlight of Italian archeological work in Iran lies in the area of paleobotanical research, which formed part of the studies in Sistan and later at Tepe Yahya, Tepe Hesar, Qal�a-ye Esma�il Aqa, and Tepe Gijlar, he noted.

He went on to say that Iran and Italy are the heirs of the world's civilization and archeology is the essence of two countries� cooperation.

Deputy Minister of Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Ministry of Iran Mohammad Hassan Talebian also delivered a speech in the opening ceremony of the exhibition.

Iran and Italy have had bilateral cooperation in the field of archaeological conservation and restoration, he said.

Italy has had much cooperation with Iran in times of crisis, including the Bam earthquake, he added.

Various Italian-Iranian groups are cooperating to preserve monuments in Persepolis and Pasargad, he noted.

Organized by Iran�s Research Institute of Cultural Heritage & Tourism, the event is aimed to discuss four main areas of Iranian cultural heritage, namely; archaeological findings relative to prehistorical times, the ones that are liked with Achaemenid-era, ones linked to Parthian and Sassanid times, and the field of conservation.