Zein-o-din Caravanserai

🕰️When was it built?

The building dates from the Safavid period, in the 10th century AH (16th century CE). Ganjali Khan, governor of Kerman, ordered it built on the instructions of Shah Abbas. It was later rebuilt and put back into use for travellers while keeping its historic form.

🏛️What was it built for?

The caravanserai also housed musketeers and guards. The rooms around the courtyard were for lodging, and the wide corridors behind the rooms and on both sides of the entrance were used to keep the animals.

👀What you will see

• The outer wall is about eight metres high, with five half-round towers attached to it.
• The entrance on the south side passes through a vestibule into the twelve-sided courtyard, whose two halves mirror each other.
• The porticoes around the courtyard have raised platforms, and at the back of each one are rooms of the same shape.
• The northern hall has a high ceiling with ribbed vaulting, and its walls and ceiling are finished in plaster.
• Crenellations and firing slots line the edge of the roof, above the brick walls and towers.

💡Something interesting

In 2023 Zein-o-din was inscribed on the World Heritage List with 53 other caravanserais as part of the Persian Caravanserai nomination. Before that, in 2006, it had received a UNESCO award of distinction for its restoration with traditional materials.

🎒Good to know before you go