Ruins of Shar-i Sokhta (The “Burned City”) (World Heritage)
The ruins of Shar-e Sochta, or the “burned city”, lie at the crossroads of trade routes from the Bronze Age in what is now Iran. The ruins of this adobe city illustrate the emergence of the first complex societies in eastern Iran.
According to mathgeneral, the city was founded around 3200 BC. BC, it experienced four heydays until 1800 BC. BC, which in the archaeological analysis are also differentiated as building periods. During this time, several specific districts emerged. One of these periods was reserved for representative buildings, other areas were used as living rooms, graves and workshops. Due to the shifting of watercourses and due to climate changes, the city was abandoned in the early 2nd millennium.
The exposed structures, tombs and the multitude of artifacts, which are in excellent condition due to the dry desert climate, make this site an extremely rich source of information, which explains the emergence of complex societies and communication in the 3rd millennium BC. Concerns.
Ruins of Shar-i Sokhta (The ”Burned City”): Facts
| Official title: | Ruins of Shar-e Sochta |
| Cultural monument: | Archaeological site of a city made of clay, the history of which goes back to the fourth millennium BC; excellent conservation status of exposed structures and artifacts due to the dry desert climate (salt steppe); largest prehistoric site in Iran |
| Continent: | Asia |
| Country: | Iran |
| Location: | Southeastern Iran (Sistan and Balochistan Province), near the border with Afghanistan |
| Appointment: | 2014 |
| Meaning: | The site gives numerous and valuable references to society and trade in the 3rd millennium BC. Chr. |
Maymand Cultural Landscape (World Heritage)
The historical cultural landscape of Maymand is located in the mountains of the Iranian province of Kerman. People there live as semi-nomads. In spring and autumn they move their cattle to the high pastures and live there in makeshift accommodation while they winter in a cave village in the valley. The apartments in the village are located in some 16-20 m² large rock caves, which are located on multi-storey terraces. The cave village has been inhabited continuously for thousands of years. Because of the low rainfall in Maymand, the community gets its water through underground aqueducts. Today 140 people still live there who have kept their traditional way of life in harmony with nature. Maymand received the Melina Mercouri Prize from UNESCO for the preservation of cultural landscapes in 2005.
Maymand Cultural Landscape: Facts
| Official title: | Cultural landscape of Maymand |
| Cultural monument: | Testimony to the traditional, semi-nomadic way of life |
| Continent: | Asia |
| Country: | Iran |
| Location: | Kerman Province |
| Appointment: | 2015 |
| Meaning: | Protection and preservation of an old cultural landscape |
The Lut Desert (World Heritage)
The Lut (Dasht-e Lut) is the largest desert in Iran and one of the most hostile places on earth. In summer, daytime temperatures are regularly over 50 degrees Celsius. Precipitation is rare and sparse. The “barren land” is almost devoid of vegetation and uninhabited – and since 2016 it has been the country’s first UNESCO natural heritage site.
The Lut Desert: Facts
| Official title: | Lut desert |
| Natural monument: | Sand and stone desert traversed by salt marshes, stretches from north-west to south-east over 300 km, around 150 km wide |
| Continent: | Asia |
| Country: | Iran |
| Location: | Southeast part of the Iranian inland deserts |
| Appointment: | 2016 |
| Meaning: | unique desert landscape and exceptional example of ongoing geological processes |
Spectacular desert landscapes
Large parts of Iran are mountainous. The core area is the central highland, up to 1500 meters high, which is divided into several basins without drainage and framed by mighty high mountain systems. It belongs to the subtropical dry belt of the Old World and only has larger settlements at the foot of the precipitous peripheral mountains. The rivers coming down from the mountains dry up in the gravel-filled basins or form marshy end lakes that dry out in the dry season and form extensive layers of salt clay or salt crusts. The largest of these salt flats (Kawire), the Dasht-e Kawir, is located in the northern center of the basin. This is followed in the southeast by the Dascht-e-Lut, which is crossed by salt marshes, and is the deepest depression in the central highlands at around 300 meters above sea level. Much of the Lut is covered by vast expanses of sand. Dunes up to several hundred meters high pile up in the south and east to form a magnificent sea of waves of sand. In the north of the desert, wind and sand have modeled a spectacular desert landscape from the layers of sediment. The accumulation of these so-called yardangs – streamlined bodies along the main wind direction with a steep side facing the wind – is one of the largest in the world. Rock ridges sometimes extend over a length of 40 kilometers. The accumulation of these so-called yardangs – streamlined bodies along the main wind direction with a steep side facing the wind – is one of the largest in the world. Rock ridges sometimes extend over a length of 40 kilometers. The accumulation of these so-called yardangs – streamlined bodies along the main wind direction with a steep side facing the wind – is one of the largest in the world. Rock ridges sometimes extend over a length of 40 kilometers.
