Damghan City Walls

The city walls of Damgan were built using mud brick construction.While the majority of city walls in Turkmenistan which were built using mud brick have crumbled into ruins, the construction system and architectural layout of the city walls in Damgan are sill visible.

The city is located on the caravan route between Nishapur and Rayy. This route intersects another caravan route that crosses the Elborz Mountains from norUı to south. Damgan was the capital

of the state of Qumes for a long period.

The city walls were probably first built during the Sasanian period Islamic historians note that some damage had occurred to the city gates when the city was besieged by the Muslims. Far this reason, the Damgan city walls are known to have existed prior to the 8th century. lbn al Esir mentions that some parts of the present walls were built to protect the city against the attack by the Abbasids in 922.

The walls were repaired at a later date by the Seljuks. The walls were known to have had five gates in the 19th century. However, there were originally three gates during the Middle Ages: the Rayy Gate, the Khorasan Gate and the Yazd Gate. Sources from the early lslamic period mention the name of the city as Qumes. After the arrival of lslam in the city, the first mosque built was known as Tarihane (''House of God'?. This mosque was probably built atop a Zoroastrian temple. The city was heavily damaged by an earthquake in 856. The reconstruction of the city continued until the middle of the 11 th century, when the Seljuks came to this area. in 1042, Kutalmış bin lsrail took over the administration of the city and the surrounding area. Tugrul Bey, the sultan at that time, died shortly after he delivered the oath of administration to Esfar bin Kurdu. The most important Seljuk monuments in the city were built at this time, including the Chil Duhteran Tomb and the Pir Alemdar Tomb. The walls of the city form a triangular shape. An inner fortress, the ruins of which can still be seen, is located west of the city walls.