Mehmandust Tower, Damghan

🕰️When was it built?

The date 490 AH (1097) is given for the tower, from its Kufic inscription. The work dates from the Seljuk era and was added to the National Heritage List on 3 March 1937. The conical dome on top has fallen, so what you see is not the tower's full height and old shape.

🏛️What was it built for?

The tower is also known as Masumzadeh and has a grave inside, but its attribution to a particular person is not certain. For a visit, it is best to look at the architecture itself, the brick decoration and the inscriptions, and to keep local stories apart from the building's recorded history.

👀What you will see

• Twelve vertical flutes divide the outer surface of the tower; one of these sections holds the entrance, facing south.
• Three rows of brick muqarnas sit at the top of the body; look up at the light and shadow of the projecting pieces.
• A Kufic inscription and a builder's inscription sit above the muqarnas, set in the brickwork.
• Inside the tower are a brick grave in the middle and two graves of laid stones.

💡Something interesting

The tower's fluted shape is often compared with the Toghrol Tower in Rey. Even so, Mehmandust keeps its own character in the rows of muqarnas and the inscriptions at the top of its body, details not to miss when taking in the whole.

🎒Good to know before you go

• Wear proper shoes to reach this village site, and respect the cemetery to the east of the tower.