قلعه ایرج | Qal'eh Iraj | Gabri Castle

-by Mahdis Mirkazemi

Overview
Located approximately 53 kilometers from the contemporary urban center of Tehran, and in close proximity to the ancient city of Rayy, stands the formidable fortress known as Iraj Castle or Gabri Castle. This remarkable edifice, believed to be the largest non-urban fortress in the ancient world, west of modern-day Afghanistan, was constructed in the latter decades of the fourth century or the initial quarter of the fifth century. Iraj Castle's defensive capabilities were augmented by a formidable wall, reaching a height of 15 meters at the most intact and surviving sections, and complemented by an outer trench. While satellite images reveal no significant interior buildings, the wall itself contained a staggering 828 rooms and 148 towers. The multitude of chambers potentially served as permanent quarters for the garrison, while the unoccupied space within was likely used temporarily. Situated approximately 3-4 kilometers northeast of the Varamin center and adjacent to the village of Asgarabad, Iraj Castle stands as a testament to the architectural ingenuity of the past.

Century Built: Uncertain. Could be 4th or 5th CE (or older)
Builder: Unknown, Maybe the Sasanians
Castellan(s): Maybe House of Mihran
(See the paper referenced at the bottom of the page)
Use: Maybe Military Fortress
Location: Ancient city of Rayy, Varamin, Tehran
Map

Other Details

Site Plan
Qaleh Iraj features two types of arches: rounded and pointed. The rounded arch was commonly used during the Parthian and Sasanian periods, while pointed arches were introduced during Islamic architecture. However, pre-Islamic examples of pointed arches can also be found, such as in the rear blind arcades of the Taq-e Kisra. The fortress has four gates, positioned in the center of each of the two long sides and close to the center of each of the two short sides. Of these gates, only the southeast gate remains well-preserved, while the others are significantly damaged. Gate towers project further beyond the face of the wall than interim towers. There are a total of 136 semi-circular towers and four round corner towers, with two towers flanking each of the four gates, making a grand total of 148 towers.

During excavations, two staircases were discovered on either side of the southeast gate near the entrance to the fortress. Both staircases align with the main corridor and are believed to belong to the earliest construction phase. The south-western staircase in the south-east gate leads to the main corridor and the rooms within the defensive wall, while the north-eastern staircase of the south-east gate leads to the main corridor within the defensive wall, on the opposite side.

Function
The academic discourse continues to examine the classification of the site, with scholars deliberating whether it constituted a city or a fortress, yet arriving at no definitive consensus thus far. Various theories exist among the archaeological and scholarly communities. Jane Dieulafoy posits that the site was an entrenched camp, a military installation established for defensive purposes against Khorasan invasions, rather than an urban center. On the other hand, G. Pézard and G. Bondoux contend that it may have been a castle or a town. Moreover, some sources of ambiguous origin propose that the site served as a royal hunting ground during the Sassanid epoch.

Environmental Information
The immediate surroundings of the compound contain pottery from the same periods, forming part of the surface assemblages. Excavation of sondages on the exterior of the fortress, towards the west and south, has yielded Chalcolithic sherds. Additionally, a Seljuk-Ilkhanid site has been found to the west of the fortress. These discoveries provide evidence of the existence of prehistoric and Islamic sites in the vicinity of the monument. It is likely that the majority of the prehistoric and Islamic sherds found within Qaleh Iraj originate from these sites and were transported into the fortress by farmers seeking to improve the agricultural productivity of the surrounding fields. Notably, during the 2016 excavations, a trench surrounding the castle was discovered.

Materials Used
The construction materials used for Qaleh Iraj include mudbricks, fired bricks, and Chineh, a type of rammed earth. The defensive walls of the fortress are composed of two distinct parts: the lower section, which consists of a stepped Chineh structure, and the upper section, which is made of vertical mudbricks. It is likely that the founders of Qaleh Iraj constructed the Chineh lower portion directly on the surface, without any foundations.

Reference

Largest Ancient Fortress of South-West Asia and the Western World? Recent Fieldwork at Sasanian Qaleh Iraj at Pishva, Iran

Nemati, Mohammadreza & Mousavinia, Mehdi & Sauer, Eberhard & Cereti, Carlo. (2019). Largest Ancient Fortress of South-West Asia and the Western World? Recent Fieldwork at Sasanian Qaleh Iraj at Pishva, Iran. Iran. 58. 1-31. 10.1080/05786967.2019.1586449.

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