SHAH NEMATOLLAH VALI MAUSOLEUM

SHAH NEMATOLLAH VALI MAUSOLEUM

 

 

the sanctuary of a saintly person said to have

lived for a hundred years, from 1331 to 1431: Shah Nur od-Din Nematollah

Vali, poet, sage, sufi, and founder of Nematollahi order of dervishes,

who are quite numerous in Iran and meet in the sanctuary of Mahan.

They are peaceful people of the Muhammedan faith. To them life means

being uprooted; their striving is for the return through death to

their "native land, relying on their activities, patience and

tolerance."

 

Nematollah was born in Aleppo, spent much of his life in Iraq, seven years in Mecca,

then traveled to Samarqand, Herat, and Yazd, spending the last years

of his long life here in Mahan.

 

The greenish-blue faience on two Qajar minarets and the mighty Safavid cupola stands

out against the unremitting deep blue of the sky and the elephant

gray of the surrounding mountains as a token of man spiritual

intrusion into the majesty of nature. The tomb and the great assembly

hall next to it do not present any particular decoration, except for

the ceiling, which one could easily take for a Kerman rug. The little

oratory, however, where Nematollah Vali used to meditate, deserves

attention owing to its extraordinary interlaced script work decoration,

divided into twelve sectors, all of different colors.

 

Inside the courtyard there is a well designed small lake or body of water surrounded by

cypress trees. On the perimeter of the shrine are glorious colonnades

which lead to the central shrine itself. Here is a dub-shell dome,

and on the tomb itself a beautiful chest is installed.

 

 

Moshtaghieh

Moshtaghieh

 

Moshtaghieh Standing to the east of Masjid-e Jam, Gonbad-e Moshtaghieh of the early nineteenth century (Qajar period), is also known as the Seh Gonbad. It has got

very fine tile decorations in its interior. The tower has been constructed

on three tombs belonging to Moshtagh Alishah (a 19th century mystic),

Sheikh Esmail, and Kowsar Alishah. This Gonbad has been repaired before

the Islamic Revolution. A costly manbar (pulpit) and some rich plaster

decorations on the ceiling of the Gonbad and mural painting constitute

the main attractions of the place.the graves of Moshtagh,Kowsar Ali Shah and Mir Hosein Khan,the great ancestor of Kerman's Mir Hoseini family.in the Zand period and after the death of Karim Khan,Mir Hosein khan became the governor of Kerman for a while.

Ghale Dokhtar(Girl's Fortress)

 

Ghale Dokhtar(Girl's Fortress)

Qaleh Dokhtar (Girl's Fortress or the virgin fortress) is located on the lofty eastern hills of Kerman city. Built during the Sassanid era, the fortress was a part of the Anahita Temple in the region.

Anahita was the goddess of Waters,Women,plants and fertility.there are no clues as to the nomenclature of the fortress.however an expert believes that some castles and fortifications,such as Ghaleh Dokhtar and Katal Dokhtar were so called due to the difficulty of the path leading to them and in general high and difficult to reach.the other explanation for this strange name is forwarded in the legend of "Haftvad's Worm".the structures of this fortress can generally be divided in 2 seperate groups.the first section is situated in the south east and is higher than the rest.it was previously called the "Ghale Kooh"(the Hill Fort).due to its natural condition it is completely isolated from the fortress.the second section is on a lower level and is known as the Ghale Dokhtar.

some parts of these forts are referred to as Ardeshir Fort.it is on top of a high hill rising five hundred feet above the plain level.the walls are made of very thick mud bricks,but so far and despite many investigations,they have not revealed any important historical artifacts.the main buildings i.e. the castle, the temple,etc.are mostly to be found in the distance separating these 2 forts.unfortunately since the soil here is quite rich,people from ages ago dug deep in the walls to take it for farming.

no one knows for certain who built the fortress,but since it was the town's fortification,it is obviously very old.legends associate the Sassanid king,Ardeshir Babakan,with the construction of this fortress,but in his Epic of kings,Ferdowsi clamis that Haftvad built the castle well before Ardeshir.

what is important is that kerman was less developed than Sirjan,Bam and Jiroft,until Ardeshir became interested in it.Ghale Dokhtar was a refuge for kermanian in the Seljuq era

kavir-e Lut

 

kavir-e Lut

kavir-e lut in kerman province is a part of the larger Lut deasert.The Lut desert is situated in the south-eastern region of Iran,and covers a total area of about 80000 sq.km.Its geographical position is as follows:

It borders the Kuh shah,the southern heights of Khusf and the Nayband mountains to the north,the kerman mountains to the west. the main Bam to Zahedan road to the south and the province of Sistan and Balouchestan to the east.

The Lut desert is divided into 3 sections.the northern,centeral and southern sections.the central section is the largest part of the Lut desert and also reaches its lowest altitude.there are several kaluts(is a moving sand castle that is being built one day and moves another day)in this region that extend from central Lut to the west.

they are located in an area 40km east and north east of Shahdad.they have been generated by the the extreme soil and water erosion and extend from north-west to the south-east of the region.the Kaluts cover part of the west fringe of the Lut desert with an average length of 145 km.there is little vegetation in the desert region.in the addition to the Kaluts there are other beautiful attractions to the east of kerman,the lowest region of the Lut desert to the east of a salt mine called Gowd-e Namak,which is situated in the west region of the Kaluts.

At this point,the altitude is a mere 56 m above sea level and is recorded as the lowest region in Iran and also the warmest point in Iran and the world.the temperature in the Lut desert can exceed 65 degree centigrade in the shade,that makes it even hotter than "Death Valley"in Saudi Arabia.

the central region that is a flat plain covered in fine stones,gravel and pebbles amid the sandy masses,situated to the east of Kaluts and toward the west of Lut desert.there is only one volcanic mountain in this region named "Malek Mohammad".

Desert cities or Lut cities are so called due to the extreme soil and water erosion in some parts of the Lut desert.in some places,the landscape has been so badly eroded that some rocks look like stairs and others like a city with buildings of several floors from a distance.these amazing sights are called "Desert Cities".

WILD LIFE

 

Wild Life The geographical,natural and weather variation of the province of Kerman has caused the variation of wild life in the province. Different plant and animal variation can be seen in different desert and mountainous parts of the province.For this reason, Many natural regions are put under conservation by the Enviroment conservation Department of the country and its branch to the province in which hunting is forbidden. The most important conserved wild areas in the province are " Khabar " and " Azroeieh " in Baft district. In this area, can find different kinds of birds such as partidge,a special kind of black breast bird, as well as different kinds of birds of pray such as hawk and falcon, and wild pigeon. various kinds of wild animals live in different warm and cold areas of the provinc, Among Them one can point to tiger, Panther , Wolf, Fox, Black bear, Raynard , Hyena, Rabbit and different kinds of snakes as well as wild goat, ewe, ram,header and Iranian Zebra.