Ezat Jon's Biography

Iranian Archaeologist
By: Dr. Kamyar Abdi (kamyar.abdi@dartmouth.edu )

Ezzat-Allâh Negahbân (usually spelled Ezat O. Negahbân) was born in the city of Ahvaz
on March 1, 1926 to ‘Abdol-Amir Negahbân and Roghieh Didebân. When he was two
years old, his father was elected to the Iranian parliament (Majlis), and the family moved to Tehran. Seven years later his father passed away while on a trip to Ahvaz. He attended Jamshid-e Jam Elementary School, Firouz-e Bahrâm High School, and the German Technical School. At sixteen, while still attending high school, he began working full-time as a traveling accountant for the national railway, on a contract basis because he was too young to be hired as an employee. This wide-ranging travel, together with a fascination for the newly constructed Irân Bâstân Museum which was located near the German Technical School, caused him to decide to pursue the study of archaeology when the German school was closed down at the beginning of World War II.

Ezat Jon's pictures

He was Iran..

“He was Iran”
In Memory of Dr. Ezzatollah Negahban

It is dark and quiet in the plane. We are descending towards Philadelphia. Our sad journey began at nine this morning and probably will not end until eleven tonight. But, that is the easy part. The hard part is to enter the house on Rexford Rd. How can we step into your house Ezat Jon knowing that you will not be there to greet us with your cheerful, kind, and lively face, and your traditional three kisses on the cheek? How can we enter the house without your friendly smile and big welcome? My heart is aching for the good old days when the house was filled with life, warmth, laughter, and love. As your soul slowly left us over the past few years, the house also grew darker and darker, succumbing to a slow decline. Will your spirit continue to live there? You were the one who gave energy to us all; we were all better and happier because of you. You were the magnet that kept all of us close.