Qasr-e Bahram Caravanserai

🕰️When was it built?

The present building is a Safavid work, rebuilt under Shah Abbas. Its history is also traced back to the Sasanian era, but when the first building was made is not clear. Qasr-e Bahram was added to the National Heritage List in 1975 and inscribed as World Heritage in September 2023 with the Persian Caravanserai group.

🏛️What was it built for?

The building was used for travellers on the desert road to stop and rest. Cells stood around the central courtyard, with places for animals behind them; this layout kept the travellers' space and the animals' space apart.

👀What you will see

• The dressed stones of the building, a defining material of this Safavid caravanserai.
• Two entrances facing each other on opposite sides of the building, one of Qasr-e Bahram's unusual features.
• The four-iwan plan, which places the iwans around the central courtyard.
• The cells around the courtyard and the stables behind them, two different parts of the lodging.

🎒Good to know before you go

• To enter Kavir National Park and visit Qasr-e Bahram, get a permit from the Semnan Province environment office before you set off.