Zibad ( fa, زيبَد, also

Romanize Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, and ...

d as Zībad) is a village in

Zibad Rural District Zibad Rural District ( fa, دهستان زيبد) is a rural district (''dehestan'') in Kakhk District, Gonabad County, Razavi Khorasan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 4,747, in 1,721 families. The rural district has 23 vil ...

Kakhk District Kakhk District ( fa, بخش کاخک) is a district (bakhsh) in Gonabad County, Razavi Khorasan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 11,814, in 4,091 families. The district has one city: Kakhk. The district has two rural distri ...

Gonabad County Gonabad County ( fa, شهرستان گناباد) is located in Razavi Khorasan province, Iran. The capital of the county is Gonabad. At the 2006 census, the county's population (including those portions of the county later split off to form B ...

, Razavi Khorasan Province,

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 ...

. At the 2006 census, its population was 4243, in 1701 families. Zibad, which means beautiful in Persian, was a famous ancient area in

Shahnameh The ''Shahnameh'' or ''Shahnama'' ( fa, شاهنامه, Šāhnāme, lit=The Book of Kings, ) is a long epic poem written by the Persian poet Ferdowsi between c. 977 and 1010 CE and is the national epic of Greater Iran. Consisting of some 50,00 ...

. According to

Shahnameh Ferdowsi The ''Shahnameh'' or ''Shahnama'' ( fa, شاهنامه, Šāhnāme, lit=The Book of Kings, ) is a long epic poem written by the Persian poet Ferdowsi between c. 977 and 1010 CE and is the national epic of Greater Iran. Consisting of some 50,00 ...

(around 1000 AD), it was the place of a famous war called

Davazdah Rokh Davāzdah Rokh ( fa, دَوازدَه رُخ) (Twelve combats) is a story in Shahnameh. This relatively long story (almost 2,500 verses) is described as one of the finest stories of Shahnameh in terms of "plot, dramatic description, and insight into ...

(12 hero) between

and

Turan Turan ( ae, Tūiriiānəm, pal, Tūrān; fa, توران, Turân, , "The Land of Tur") is a historical region in Central Asia. The term is of Iranian origin and may refer to a particular prehistoric human settlement, a historic geographical re ...

. Zibad also has an ancient

qanat A qanat or kārīz is a system for transporting water from an aquifer or water well to the surface, through an underground aqueduct; the system originated approximately 3,000 BC in what is now Iran. The function is essentially the same across ...

that may be more than 1600 years old. Qala Zibad-Shah Neshin-Sassanid

Zibad famous product

*its

saffron Saffron () is a spice derived from the flower of ''Crocus sativus'', commonly known as the "saffron crocus". The vivid crimson stigma and styles, called threads, are collected and dried for use mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent i ...

,watermelon ,melon, rice and in the past also

opium Opium (or poppy tears, scientific name: ''Lachryma papaveris'') is dried latex obtained from the seed capsules of the opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid morphine, which i ...

production. *its ancient castle which was the shelter of the last emperor of sasanian

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 ...

Yazdegerd III Yazdegerd III (also spelled Yazdgerd III and Yazdgird III; pal, 𐭩𐭦𐭣𐭪𐭥𐭲𐭩) was the last Sasanian King of Kings of Iran from 632 to 651. His father was Shahriyar and his grandfather was Khosrow II. Ascending the throne at t ...

, the place of three ancient wars, and its

Mithraism Mithraism, also known as the Mithraic mysteries or the Cult of Mithras, was a Roman mystery religion centered on the god Mithras. Although inspired by Iranian worship of the Zoroastrian divinity (''yazata'') Mithra, the Roman Mithras is linke ...

monument. *its Qanat and dar e soufe a famous mountain wall rock, similar to

Taq-e Bostan Taq-e Bostan ( fa, طاق بستان, ) is a site with a series of large rock reliefs from the era of the Sassanid Empire of Persia (Iran), carved around the 4th century CE. This example of Persian Sassanid art is located 5 km from the ...

*its water clock which had been in use continuously from 400BCE until 1950. *Its

Watermill A watermill or water mill is a mill that uses hydropower. It is a structure that uses a water wheel or water turbine to drive a mechanical process such as milling (grinding), rolling, or hammering. Such processes are needed in the production of ...

producing flour and crushed wheat. The ancient water mill was at work until 1984 and destroyed for the construction of a dam. Ancient water clock used in qanat of gonabad 2500 years ago

Ancient water clock used in qanat of gonabad 2500 years ago

According to

Callisthenes Callisthenes of Olynthus (; grc-gre, Καλλισθένης; 360327 BCE) was a well-connected Greek historian in Macedon, who accompanied Alexander the Great during his Asiatic expedition. The philosopher Aristotle was Callisthenes's great ...

, the Persians were using

water clock A water clock or clepsydra (; ; ) is a timepiece by which time is measured by the regulated flow of liquid into (inflow type) or out from (outflow type) a vessel, and where the amount is then measured. Water clocks are one of the oldest time-m ...

s in 328BCE to ensure a just and exact distribution of water from qanats to their shareholders for agricultural irrigation. The use of water clocks in Iran, especially in Zibad, dates back to 500BCE. Later they were also used to determine the exact holy days of pre-Islamic religions, such as the ''

Nowruz Nowruz ( fa, نوروز, ; ), zh, 诺鲁孜节, ug, نەۋروز, ka, ნოვრუზ, ku, Newroz, he, נורוז, kk, Наурыз, ky, Нооруз, mn, Наурыз, ur, نوروز, tg, Наврӯз, tr, Nevruz, tk, Nowruz, ...

'', ''Chelah'', or '' Yaldā'' - the shortest, longest, and equal-length days and nights of the years. The water clocks used in Iran were one of the most practical ancient tools for timing the yearly calenda

.

Kūh-Zibad

The

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited Summit (topography), summit area, and ...

Kūh-Zibad Kūh-Zibad ( fa, کوه زیبد) its peak also called Tir Mahi Kūh-e Tīr Māhīhos Geonames.org (cc-by) post uppdaterad 2012-04-06; databasdump nerladdad 2016-08-15 is a mountain in the province of Razavi Khorasan, city of Gonabad Distric ...

is located near Zibad, and is the second-highest mountain in Razavi Khorasan Province.

is famous because of some great historical events. its peak is called Tir Mahi The terrain around Kuh-e zibad is mainly hilly. The highest point in the vicinity is above sea level, southeast of Qole-e Tir mahi. Around Kuh-e Zibad is very sparsely populated, with 5 inhabitants per square kilometre. Nearest society zibad, north of Kuh-e Zibad. The neighbourhood around Kuh-e Zibad is barren with little or vegetation. In the neighbourhood around are unusually many named mountains and valleys. A cold steppe climate prevailing in the region. The average annual temperature in the area is 17 °C. The warmest month is July when the average temperature is 30 °C, and the coldest is January, with 1 °C. Average annual rainfall is . The rainiest month is February, with an average of of precipitation, and the driest is July, with 1 mm of precipitation. This mountain had been referred in some historical book such as

shahnameh The ''Shahnameh'' or ''Shahnama'' ( fa, شاهنامه, Šāhnāme, lit=The Book of Kings, ) is a long epic poem written by the Persian poet Ferdowsi between c. 977 and 1010 CE and is the national epic of Greater Iran. Consisting of some 50,00 ...

war as the Zibad mountain and its eastern part is called black mountain or kouh Gonabad. the long-range mountain called Qohestan and It extends from

Bajestan Bajestan ( fa, بجستان, also Romanized as Bajestān and Bejestān; also known as Bījestān and Bījistān) is a city and capital of Bajestan County, in Razavi Khorasan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 11,136, in 3,090 ...

Birjand Birjand ( fa, بیرجند , also Romanized as Bīrjand and Birdjand) is the capital of the Iranian province of South Khorasan. The city is known for its saffron, barberry, jujube, and handmade carpet exports. Birjand had a population of 187,0 ...

near the border with

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

this rang mountain separate

south Khorasan South Khorasan Province ( fa, استان خراسان جنوبی ''Ostān-e Khorāsān-e Jonūbī'') is a province located in eastern Iran. Birjand is the centre of the province. The other major cities are Ferdows, Tabas and Qaen. In 2014, it was ...

from Razavi Khorasan,part of this rang mountain near

Kakhk Kakhk ( fa, کاخْک, also Romanized as Kākhk and Kākhak; also known as Kākh) is a city and capital of Kakhk District, in Gonabad County, Razavi Khorasan Province, Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and als ...

is called black mountain or kouh e

gonabad Gonabad ( fa, گناباد , also Romanized as Gonābād; also known as Gūnābād; formerly Janābaz) is a city and capital of Gonabad County, in Razavi Khorasan Province, Iran. At the 2011 census, its population was 36,367, in 10,389 families. ...

Zibad Castle

Zibad Castle Zibad Castle is one of the four historical monuments of Zibad, Iran, located in the Kakhk district of Gonabad County, in the Razavi Khorasan Province. It is believed to be the last refuge of Yazdegerd III, whose death signaled the collapse ...

is one of the four historical monuments of Zibad. It is located in

Gonabad Gonabad ( fa, گناباد , also Romanized as Gonābād; also known as Gūnābād; formerly Janābaz) is a city and capital of Gonabad County, in Razavi Khorasan Province, Iran. At the 2011 census, its population was 36,367, in 10,389 families. ...

and is believed to be the last shelter of the last Sasanian emperor

. It was registered in 2001 as a national heritage property in Iran, as it is related to the history of pre-Islamic

. In addition to the castle of Zibad, there is also the royal castle of Zibad, nationally registered under the name of Shahab Castle in 2002. Sources conflict as to the exact manner of the emperor's final moments. One suggests that after his defeat, he sought refuge at a millers near Marv, who killed Yazdegerd in order to obtain his jewelry, whilst

the Cambridge History of Iran ''The Cambridge History of Iran'' is a multi-volume survey of Iranian history published in the United Kingdom by Cambridge University Press. The seven volumes cover "the history and historical geography of the land which is present-day Iran, as we ...

states that the miller was sent by

Mahoe Suri Māhōē Sūrī, known in Islamic sources as Māhūy Sūrī, was an Iranian aristocrat, who served as the ''marzbān'' (general of a frontier province, "margrave") of Marv during the reign of the last Sasanian king of kings Yazdegerd III (r. 632&n ...

. According to the history of Belazari,

was defeated in a war in the city of Gonabad. According to the excavations of Zibd-Gonabad Fortress and according to oral narrations and the report of Blazeri and Habib Abdolhai,Dr Ajam and Abas Zmani (historical study magazine 1974), it seems that the narration related to the murder of Yazdgerd in

Merw Merv ( tk, Merw, ', مرو; fa, مرو, ''Marv''), also known as the Merve Oasis, formerly known as Alexandria ( grc-gre, Ἀλεξάνδρεια), Antiochia in Margiana ( grc-gre, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐν τῇ Μαργιανῇ) and ...

Mill is more mythical than the truth. What is closer to the truth is the narration of

Al-Baladhuri ʾAḥmad ibn Yaḥyā ibn Jābir al-Balādhurī ( ar, أحمد بن يحيى بن جابر البلاذري) was a 9th-century Muslim historian. One of the eminent Middle Eastern historians of his age, he spent most of his life in Baghdad and ...

Kitab Futuh al-Buldan ''Futūh al-Buldān'' ( ar, فتوح البلدان, , Conquest of (the) countries), or ''Kitāb Futūḥ al-Buldān''("Book of the Conquest of the Countries/Lands"), is the best known work by the 9th century Arab or Persian historian Ahmad Ibn Yah ...

, that he was killed in Gonabad The main text of Blazeri's book The Fate of Yazdgerd III: Then he went to Khorasan, then he went to Janabad (

) he was welcomed and ruler of merv send Nizak Trkhan to welcom him in gonabad. but after weeks he asked the emperor to marry his daughter and the emperor refused and this caused a war and at the end Nizak attacked and defeated the king army and Destroyed and captured the remnants of the imperial forces. the battle was occurred in Zibad

was probably from the

House of Suren House of Suren or Surenas.. (Parthian: 𐭎𐭅𐭓𐭉𐭍 Surēn, Middle Persian: 𐭮𐭥𐭫𐭩𐭭) is one of two Parthian noble families explicitly mentioned by name in sources dateable to the Arsacid period.. History The head of Suren ...

, one of the

seven Parthian clans The Seven Great Houses of Iran, also known as the seven Parthian clans, were seven feudal aristocracies of Parthian origin, who were allied with the Sasanian court. The Parthian clans all claimed ancestry from Achaemenid Persians. The seven Great ...

of the Sasanian state. During the Islamic invasion of Iran, Yazdegerd III went to refuge in Marv; in his way to merv he stayed in gonabad Mahoe envoy warmly received them in gonabad.

used opportunity to secretly plot with the

Hephthalite The Hephthalites ( xbc, ηβοδαλο, translit= Ebodalo), sometimes called the White Huns (also known as the White Hunas, in Iranian as the ''Spet Xyon'' and in Sanskrit as the ''Sveta-huna''), were a people who lived in Central Asia during th ...

ruler Nizak against Yazdegerd. Regardless, the death of Yazdegerd marked the end of the Sasanian Empire, and made it less difficult for the Arabs to conquer the rest of Iran. All of

Khorasan Khorasan may refer to: * Greater Khorasan, a historical region which lies mostly in modern-day northern/northwestern Afghanistan, northeastern Iran, southern Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan * Khorasan Province, a pre-2004 province of Ira ...

was soon conquered by the Arabs, who would use it as a base to attack Transoxiana. The death of Yazdegerd thus marked the end of the last pre-Islamic Iranian empire after more than 400 years of rule. An empire–which had a generation earlier briefly conquered

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

and

Asia Minor Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...

, even reaching as a far as Constantinople, fell to a force of lightly equipped Arabs that were used to skirmishes and desert warfare. The heavy Sasanian cavalry was too sluggish and systematized to contain them; employed light-armed Arab or East Iranian mercenaries from Khorasan and Transoxiana would have been much more successful.

Sights and attractions

Zibad is an ancient place with many historical places. The

war had occurred in Zibad.

Sufeh Pir

Sufeh Pir is another famous place in Zibad, a holy cave believed to be the tomb of

Piran Viseh Piran son of Viseh ( fa, پیران ویسه) is a Turanian figure in Shahnameh, the national epic of Greater Iran. Beside Shahnameh, Piran is also mentioned in other sources such as Tabari and Tha'ālibī. He is the king of Khotan and the spahb ...

in the

mountain. He is a

ian figure in

, the

national epic A national epic is an epic poem or a literary work of epic scope which seeks or is believed to capture and express the essence or spirit of a particular nation—not necessarily a nation state, but at least an ethnic or linguistic group with as ...

Greater Iran Greater Iran ( fa, ایران بزرگ, translit=Irān-e Bozorg) refers to a region covering parts of Western Asia, Central Asia, South Asia, Xinjiang, and the Caucasus, where both Culture of Iran, Iranian culture and Iranian langua ...

. Beside Shahnameh, Piran is also mentioned in other sources such as

Tabari ( ar, أبو جعفر محمد بن جرير بن يزيد الطبري), more commonly known as al-Ṭabarī (), was a Muslim historian and scholar from Amol, Tabaristan. Among the most prominent figures of the Islamic Golden Age, al-Tabari i ...

and

Tha'ālibī Al-Tha'alibi (961–1038), was a writer famous for his anthologies and collections of epigrams. As a writer of prose and verse in his own right, distinction between his and the work of others is sometimes lacking, as was the practice of writ ...

. He is the king of

Khotan Hotan (also known as Gosthana, Gaustana, Godana, Godaniya, Khotan, Hetian, Hotien) is a major oasis town in southwestern Xinjiang, an autonomous region in Western China. The city proper of Hotan broke off from the larger Hotan County to become ...

and the

spahbed ''Spāhbed'' (also spelled ''spahbod'' and ''spahbad'') is a Middle Persian title meaning "army chief" used chiefly in the Sasanian Empire. Originally there was a single ''spāhbed'', called the , who functioned as the generalissimo of the Sasani ...

Afrasiab Afrasiab ( fa, ''afrāsiyāb''; ae, Fraŋrasyan; Middle-Persian: ''Frāsiyāv, Frāsiyāk'') is the name of the mythical king and hero of Turan. He is the main antagonist of the Persian epic Shahnameh, written by Ferdowsi. The mythical king ...

, the king of Turan. According to the book of Dr. Abas Zamani

was buried in the cave of Sofe Zibad now called DarSufa Pir

Sarv-e Zibad

The Cypress of Zibad ( fa, سرو زیبد ''Sarv-e Zibad''), is a ''

Cupressus sempervirens ''Cupressus sempervirens'', the Mediterranean cypress (also known as Italian cypress, Tuscan cypress, Persian cypress, or pencil pine), is a species of cypress native to the eastern Mediterranean region, in northeast Libya, southern Albania, sou ...

'' tree in Zibad, Sarv-e Zibad is fro

Qanats of Ghasabeh a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

World Heritage Sites A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the UNESCO, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNES ...

sinc 2016,.The Persian Qanat
/ref> Sarv-e Zibad is protected by the

Cultural Heritage Organization of Iran Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicraft Organization ( fa, وزارت میراث فرهنگی، گردشگری و صنایع دستی ایران, ''Vâzart-e Miras-e Ferhengi-ye, Gârdâshigâri-ye vâ Sânai'-ye Dâsti-ye Iran'') is ...

as a national natural monument and is a major tourist attraction with a height of 20 metres and with a perimeter of at its trunk and higher up around its branches. It is estimated to be over two millennia old and is likely the second-oldest living lifeform in

. The exact age of the tree has been difficult to determine, but it is estimated to be between around 2000 years old. Despite the desert and dry place with little rain natural conditions of its location have been credited as the main reason for the tree’s longevit

( fa, سرو زیبد) sarv zibad is from

battle field near to the

and

it was center of ancient Zibad and now located north of the central roundabout of Zibad.

Culture

Holding the Yalda Night and festival of

is 2 most famous festival of Zibad. List of festivals in Iran, Iranian festivals such as

Yaldā Night Yaldā Night ( fa, شب یلدا ''shab-e yalda'') or Chelle Night (also Chellah Night, fa, شب چلّه ''shab-e chelle'') is an ancient festival in Iran, Iraqi Kurdistan, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan and Turkey celebrated on the winter solstice ...

and

are celebrated in Zibad.

References

Bibliography

* * * *

*Parssea magazin

*IRNA news agenc

* Baran Kavir magazine No 62 Sarve Zibad Dr.M.Aja

* Sarve in ira

External links

* * *Parssea magazin

*IRNA news agenc

Gallery

File:Zibad Castle.jpg, Zibad Castle KarizZibad.jpg, qanat zibad ZibadTirMahi.jpg, mountain Komay_Zibad.jpg, Zeebad.jpg, castell Darb_Soufeh._a_sassanid_castel.JPG, Saffron_Field.JPG, saffron RivasIranZibad.JPG, .Rheum zibad Zibad_Rheum_or_red_Rheum_Iran.jpg, zibad File:تیرمهیtirMahiZibad.jpg,

Zibad Gonabad File:Zibad castel.jpg, castell File:Zibad Castle 1.jpg, Zibad Castle File:ZibadTirMahi.jpg, File:YaldaZibad.jpg, Yalda festival File:Ancient water clock used in qanat of gonabad 2500 years ago.JPG, Ancient water clock File:میرآب.JPG, Ancient water clock. The Fifth Joust of the Rooks Ruhham Versus Barman,Painting attributed to Qasim ibn 'Ali (active ca. 1525–60)-Painting (19.5 cm) (17.2 cm).jpg, 12rokh war paintings Gustaham Slays Lahhak and Farshidvard,Painting attributed to Bashdan Qara (active ca. 1525–35)-Painting (H. 17.2 x W. 17.5 cm).jpg, 12rokh war paintings Kai Khusrau Shahnameh Met 34.24.5.jpg,

war paintings The Night Battle of Kai Khusrau and Afrasiyab,Painting attributed to Bashdan Qara (active ca. 1525–35)-Painting ; (H. 30.8 x W. 18.4 cm).jpg,

paintings Zibad 12 Rox.jpg, 12rokh

paintings گناباد 5.jpg, zibad گناباد 6.jpg, zibad گناباد 7.jpg, zibad {{Razavi Khorasan Province :Razavi Khorasan Province :Tourist attractions in Razavi Khorasan Province :Individual trees in Iran :Oldest trees Populated places in Gonabad County Shahnameh stories Gonabad County Razavi Khorasan Province Tourist attractions in Razavi Khorasan Province Individual trees in Iran