Kerman, Oct 29, IRNA-Kerman province Police Chief, Brigadier Hamid Gorizan, on October 29, 2005, exposed to reporters the corpse of a 25-cm dwarf unearthed in Shahdad area in the southeastern Kerman province.

Speaking to reporters on Saturday, he said that the dwarf, whose corpse was discovered recently, is estimated to be 12-16 years old and dates back to 1,000 years ago.

Two months ago some illegal excavations in the historical fortress of Gudiz near Shahdad dating back to the Sassanid era led to the discovery of a 25-centimeter corpse now known as the "mummified dwarf."

"The discovery of the mummified dwarf in the province and rumors of the existence of an ancient dwarf city in Kerman has posed numerous questions to archaeologists and served to arouse sensations among the public.

"The corpse, unearthed by two individuals, was purchased in late summer of 2005 by the local police in a fake transaction and the culprits were arrested," concluded Gorizan.