The Shahrestan bridge is the oldest bridge on the

Zayandeh River Zayanderud ( fa, Zāyanderud, script=Latn, from "fertile" or "life giver", and "river"), also spelled as ''Zayandeh-Rood'' or ''Zayanderood'', is the largest river of the Iranian Plateau in central Iran. Geography The Zayandeh starts in t ...

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 ...

. The foundations date back to the

Sasanian The Sasanian () or Sassanid Empire, officially known as the Empire of Iranians (, ) and also referred to by historians as the Neo-Persian Empire, was the last Iranian empire before the early Muslim conquests of the 7th-8th centuries AD. Named ...

era (3rd to 7th century C.E.), but the top was renovated twice, first in the 10th century by the

Buyids The Buyid dynasty ( fa, آل بویه, Āl-e Būya), also spelled Buwayhid ( ar, البويهية, Al-Buwayhiyyah), was a Shia Iranian dynasty of Daylamite origin, which mainly ruled over Iraq and central and southern Iran from 934 to 1062. Coup ...

, then during the 11th century during the Seljuk period. Nevertheless, the architectural style is entirely Sassanian. The bridge consists of two parabolas. The vertical parabola ensures that the middle of the bridge is its highest point. The horizontal parabola produces a bend to the west, strengthening it against the flow of the river. The bridge is 107.8 metres long and an average of 5.2 metres wide. It has two tiers of pointed arches, thirteen large ones spanning the river itself, and eight smaller ones that nest between them. The purpose of the latter is to quicken the flow of water during floods, taking pressure off the structure. The

has recently been diverted about 100 meters away from the bridge towards the south, leaving an artificial lake around the bridge to protect it from further damage.

Gallery

File:Shaherestan village , near Isfahan 1 by Eugène Flandin.jpg File:Shahrestan Bridge (Isfahan) 004.jpg File:Shahrestan Bridge (Isfahan) 005.jpg File:Shahrestan Bridge (Isfahan) 002.jpg File:Shahrestan Bridge (Isfahan) 003.jpg

External links

Archnet
- with photo

Gallery

External links

See also