The Kurit Dam is a

masonry Masonry is the building of structures from individual units, which are often laid in and bound together by mortar; the term ''masonry'' can also refer to the units themselves. The common materials of masonry construction are bricks, building ...

arch dam An arch dam is a concrete dam that is curved upstream in plan. The arch dam is designed so that the force of the water against it, known as hydrostatic pressure, presses against the arch, causing the arch to straighten slightly and strengthe ...

located 34 km southeast of

Tabas Tabas ( fa, طبس, also Romanized as Ṭabas), formerly known as Golshan, is the capital city of Tabas County in South Khorasan Province of Iran. At the 2011 census, its population was 35,150, in 9,903 families. Tabas is located in central Iran ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

near the village of Kurit. The dam is an early arch dam constructed by the

Mongolians The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal member of ...

around 1350 AD.

Dam

The dam was originally 60m tall but 4m of height was added in 1850. The dam was constructed in a very narrow gorge and was the tallest in the world up until the early 20th century. The dam also contained a water outlet system considered sophisticated for its time. Currently, the dam does not impound a

reservoir A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation. Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...

and a large segment of its lower downstream face has fallen off. Behind the dam, where the reservoir existed, is now full of

silt Silt is granular material of a size between sand and clay and composed mostly of broken grains of quartz. Silt may occur as a soil (often mixed with sand or clay) or as sediment mixed in suspension with water. Silt usually has a floury feel ...

with the exception of directly behind the upstream face which has been excavated.

History

Kurit Dam belongs to the post-Islamic historical periods and is located in the village of Kurit,

city,

.kurit dam: an illustrative example of water wisdom [2014]
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References

{{Dams and reservoirs in Iran Buildings and structures completed in 1350 Infrastructure completed in the 14th century Dams in South Khorasan Province Archaeological sites in Iran Masonry dams Buildings and structures in South Khorasan Province