DAMS OF THE ANCIENT CITY OF ISTAKHR

Istakhr, from 500 B.C. to 1000 A.D. was a large metropolitan city of the ancient world. From the Achaemenid era to the early Islamic centuries, Istakhr was either the capital of the Persian Empire or the center of Istakhr province, a part of which is now called Fars Province. A major reason for the growth of Istakhr and its sustaining for 1500 years, besides other considerations, was the presence of Sivand River (Pulvar River in history). To use water for domestic and irrigation purposes, many storage and diversion dams were constructed on the 150-kilometer long Sivand River. Other hydraulic structures such as water mills, tunnels, canals, aqueducts, bridges and water control systems were also built around this river. Most of the diversion dams and the hydraulic structures are of stone masonry work with sarooj mortar. The stonework is coursed on the face and uncoursed inside the structure. Stones are of high quality broken limestone and brought from nearby quarries. In this paper, we introduce some of the remainders of the diversion dams that still are surviving on the Sivand River for more than 2500 years.

DAMS OF THE ANCIENT CITY OF ISTAKHR Keywords:

Ancient Dams , Istakhr , Sivand River , Sarooj