Misplaced Pages

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Hmike121 (talk | contribs) at 05:28, 24 January 2025 (←Created page with 'The Ahwan Stone Caravanserai or Noushirvan Caravanserai is located in the Ahwan region, 42 kilometers east of Semnan. The building of this caravanserai is made of stone and mortar. This caravanserai was built in the 5th century AH. Near this building, there is also the Shah Abbasid Ahwan Caravanserai, which was built during the Safavid period next to the old caravanserai. == Features == The Noushirvan Caravanserai of Ahvan has been of interest throughout h...'). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

The Ahwan Stone Caravanserai or Noushirvan Caravanserai is located in the Ahwan region, 42 kilometers east of Semnan. The building of this caravanserai is made of stone and mortar. This caravanserai was built in the 5th century AH. Near this building, there is also the Shah Abbasid Ahwan Caravanserai, which was built during the Safavid period next to the old caravanserai.

Features

The Noushirvan Caravanserai of Ahvan has been of interest throughout history, from the early days of Islam to the Ilkhanid period, and repairs were always carried out on it to preserve the building, which sometimes led to changes. Now, only the surrounding walls and part of the large entrance corridors remain from this building, and the rest of the building is only a pile of small and large stones.

One of the characteristics of Sassanid architecture is the construction of four-porch caravanserai, and the fact that the Anushirvani caravanserai has four porches brings the theory closer to the truth that this ancient building was built to ensure the security of travelers on the way to Khorasan and is considered one of the largest caravanserai of the Sassanid period.

It is believed that this caravanserai was an important building, and the type of building and existing works confirm its antiquity. Now, only the surrounding walls and part of the large entrance corridor in front of it remain from this caravanserai, and the rest has become a pile of small and large stones. The central courtyard of the caravanserai is rectangular and has 26 rooms.

Abraham Valentine Williams Jackson, a well-known orientalist, describes this ancient palace in his travelogue, presenting a plan of the Anushirvan Ahwaan Palace, and considers it to be one of the buildings of the Sassanid period of Khosrow I Anushirvan and belonging to Sharaf al-Din Ma'ali Anushirvan, son of Malek al-Ma'ali Manuchehr, ruler of Qoms, Tabaristan, and Gorgan, who ruled in the years 420-421 AH.

The author of Motal al-Shams says the following about this caravanserai:

The Noushirvan Caravanserai is very old and has not been seen in the journeys and journeys of Khorasan as old as that. It was built in a strange manner. The entire building is made of stone, plaster and brick. It has four long verandas on four sides…

With the passage of time and considering the strategic location of the Ahwaan region, another caravanserai was built next to the stone Anushirvani caravanserai during the Safavid period. With the construction of the Shah Abbasid caravanserai in Ahwaan, the Anushirvani caravanserai gradually lost its prosperity.

See also

• Caravanserai
• List of Caravanserais of Iran
• Iranian architecture
• List of caravanserais worldwide

References

1. "UNESCO assessors to examine centuries-old Iranian caravanserai". Tehran Times. 2021-08-27. Retrieved 2023-09-21.
2. https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/458520/Iran-submits-UNESCO-dossier-on-collective-caravanserais