TEHRAN—On September 17, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization added 54 Iranian roadside inns to its World Cultural Heritage list under the name: Persian Caravanserai.

With this recognition, the world now acknowledges the significant role that a typical Persian Caravanserai has played throughout history.

Caravanserais were not only places to rest on long journeys but also dynamic hubs for commercial, financial, social, and cultural affairs. They played an important role not only in promoting international trade but also in cultural exchange.

The term caravanserai (aka caravansera) comes from two words “caravan” which means travelers who travel in a group and “sera” which means house or place of residence.

A brief history

In the past, traveling was not as popular as it is today. Due to tough roads, travel was mostly limited to business trips and the most important thing for businessmen was accommodation on the road. Iranian caravans are also built for the same purpose.

Thanks to its favorable geographical location, the Iranian Plateau has long been a crossroads for major communication routes.

One of these important routes is the Silk Road, which includes a series of routes connecting East, West, and South Asia as well as North Africa and Eastern Europe. The Silk Road is considered the largest and most important trade route in the world.

Following the Industrial Revolution and the appearance of motorized transport, Persian caravanserais also lost their initial prosperity.

Many of them were abandoned and gradually turned into ruins. Nowadays, the use of some Iranian caravanserais has also changed and today they are converted into restaurants, traditional hotels, and accommodation facilities for tourists.

The history of Iranian caravanserais goes back to the pre-Islam era, especially the Achaemenid era (more than 2500 years ago). At that time, caravanserais were located at a distance of one day’s journey from each other.

The dispersion of towns and villages, distance from main roads, desert, and drought in the central regions of Iran are other reasons for the construction of caravanserais. In fact, travel between different remote regions of the country seemed impossible without these stations.

The earliest caravanserais in Iran (widely referred to as Chaparkhanehs) belong to the Achaemenid and Parthian periods. Herodotus, the Greek historian, in his writings, mentions buildings similar to caravanserais that were built in the area between the Achaemenid capital and Sard.

During the Sassanid era, due to the economic prosperity in Iran, extreme importance was given to the re-construction of roads and also the residences between the roads; For this reason, many caravanserais were built in Iran during the Sassanid period. Among the caravanserais of that era, we can mention “Darvazeh Gach Caravanserai”, “Kanar Siah”, “Dir Gachin” and “Robat Anoushirvani” along the Silk Road.

At the time when the Arabs came to power in Persia, the country no longer had the prosperity of commerce before Islam; For this reason, road construction and buildings along the way were forgotten, and caravanserais lost their former prestige.

During the post-Islamic period, caravanserai architecture reached its peak and suburban caravanserai were built on the way to towns, villages, mountain passes, and desert areas.

In Ghaznavid era, tens of caravanserais were built in Iran, especially in the eastern areas of the Silk Road. “Robat Mahi” 66 km east of Mashhad, “Robat Sharaf” a palace-like mansion on the road from Mashhad to Sarkhas, and “Robat Karim” on Shahryar road are among the most beautiful caravanserais of the Ghaznavid period.

Golden age for Persian Caravanserai

The Safavid era is considered the golden age of caravanserai construction; Because during this period, maritime and overland trade was very prosperous and Shah Abbas I decided to rebuild and revive the Silk Road. The mighty monarch believed that the prosperity of the Silk Road required the revival of caravans.

A sweeping renovation and construction of caravanserais during the Safavid era especially under the decree of Shah Abbas is one of the reasons why most caravanserais are known as Shah Abbasi caravanserais, although some renovated caravanserais were built before the Safavid era. Shah Abbasi Caravanserai in Karaj is one of the examples of Persian caravanserai built during the Safavid era.

Architectural elements

Iranian caravanserais were usually constructed in a square or rectangular outline, although there are very few circular caravanserais in the country. The entrance of a caravanserai is very big and high so that it can be seen from far away by the passengers.

While in a cozy caravanserai, it is not hard to fancy the hustle and bustle of merchants bargaining on prices, recounting their arduous journeys to one another while their camels chewing hay!

Around the courtyard, there are arches on a platform, which are actually small rooms where travelers used to rest. In some cases, there were small rooms under the passenger room where passengers’ belongings were kept.

A few Iranian caravanserais are built in a circular shape, which is of high importance in terms of architecture. Zainuddin, Zizeh and Tajabad caravanserais are amont the top exampales.

Iranian architects have designed most of the polygonal caravanserais in an octagonal shape. Examples of polygonal caravanserais include Amin Abad, Khan Khore, Chahar Abadeh, and De Beed caravansaries on the Isfahan-Shiraz road, and on the Jahrom-Lar road. Most of these structures were built in the Safavid period and are derived from the style of Isfahani architecture.

In addition, some have been built with the idea of schools and mosques in the form of two porches and with a square or rectangular plan. The location of the porches is one at the entrance and the other facing it. Examples of these structures are Khoshab Caravanserai, Do Kohak Caravanserai, and Maranjab Caravanserai.

Four-portico caravanserais appeared from the Seljuk period onwards. An example of this building can be seen in Deir Getchin Caravanserai near the city of Qom. Some caravanserais do not have specific plans and their designs vary. Sabzevar Caravanserai and Shah Abbasi Jolfa Caravanserai belong to this category.

Stone, brick, clay, and traditional mortars are the main materials used to build caravanserais being decorated with tiling and brickwork.

For modern visitors, cozy chambers that are meticulously laid out around a vast courtyard may easily evoke spirits of the past. While in a cozy caravanserai, it is not hard to fancy the hustle and bustle of merchants bargaining on prices, recounting their arduous journeys to one another while their camels chewing hay!

AFM