The Arg-e Bam (), located in the city of Bam, Kerman province of southeastern Iran,

is the largest adobe building in the world. The entire building was a large fortress containing the citadel, but because the citadel dominates the ruins, the entire fortress is now named Bam Citadel.

Listed by UNESCO as part of the World Heritage Site "Bam and its Cultural Landscape", it can be traced back to at least the Achaemenid Empire (sixth to fourth centuries BC). The citadel rose to importance from the seventh to eleventh centuries, as a crossroads along the Silk Road and other important trade routes, and as a producer of silk and cotton garments.

On 26 December 2003, the citadel was almost completely destroyed by an earthquake, along with much of the rest of Bam and its environs. A few days after the earthquake, the President of Iran, Mohammad Khatami, announced that the citadel would be rebuilt.

History

There is no precise archaeological dating of the buildings of the Citadel of Bam.

During the Parthian era, the fort was expanded and became Arg-e Bam, the Citadel of Bam. A comparative study, titled “Bam and a Brief History of Urban Settlement and Planning in Iran”, concluded that the essential core of the city of Bam and the Governor’s section were built during the Parthian era. Under the Sassanids, the castle was seized by Ardeshir Babakan. New fortifications and walls were constructed between 224 and 637 AD.

Citadel design and architecture

The citadel is situated in the center of the fortress-city, on the point with the widest view, for security.

All buildings are made of non-baked clay bricks, i.e. adobe. Prior to the 2003 earthquake, Bam Citadel was most likely the largest adobe structure in the world.

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File:010213-Kerman-IMG 0371-2.jpg|alt=Arg-e Bam, Kerman, Iran

File:010213-Bam-IMG 0316-2.jpg|alt=Arg-e Bam, Kerman, Iran

File:010213-Kerman-IMG 0354-2.jpg|alt=Arg-e Bam, Kerman, Iran

File:010213-Bam-IMG 0316-2.jpg|alt=Arg-e Bam, Kerman, Iran

File:010213-Kerman-IMG 0323-2.jpg|alt=Arg-e Bam, Kerman, Iran

File:010213-Kerman-IMG 0294-2.jpg|alt=Arg-e Bam, Kerman, Iran

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See also

  • List of Iranian castles
  • Iranian architecture
  • List of World Heritage Sites in Iran

References

  • The original text was a translation by of the article "Bam-Citadelo", originally written in Esperanto language by Asad Mahbub, first appeared in Irana Esperantisto (Iranian Esperantist), No. 4, Year 2, Summer 2003, 40 p., pp.&nbsp;5–7. Permission has been granted for its use in Wikipedia. Its sources were:
  • Nimrokhi az Arge Bam (Bam Citadel at a Glance), by Davood Yousofzadeh, Bam: M. Mohammadi-zade, 1998, p.&nbsp;160.
  • Bam and its Cultural Landscape (World Heritage List)
  • Bam Citadel site, with photos
  • The Bam Citadel – documentary film
  • Newspaper item: "The Lost Beauty that was Bam"
  • Photos of the Bam Citadel
  • More photos of the citadel
  • Iran Cultural Heritage Organisation Site on Arge Bam
  • Iran Cultural Heritage Organisation Site – Reconstruction Photos
  • High-resolution 360° Panoramas of the Bam Citadel | Art Atlas