Abarkooh
Yazd province is located in the heart of the desert. If we look at the aerial photos of the province, Abarkooh and other cities of Yazd are the only living, sort of green points of the desert.
For this reason, spring and summer are relatively hot and dry. The weather may be a little tolerable in early spring, but the summers in Yazd province are really hot.
On your way Yazd to Shiraz you will find a small town, too amazing to just pass by it. If you visit Abarkooh, and this is to be said with no prejudice or exaggeration out of patriotism, you will encounter attractions that you have not seen in any other place in the world.
One of the most famous cities of Yazd province is Abarkooh or Abarqoo. One of the special trades of world phenomena and according to researchers, the oldest living creature in Asia is the cypress tree of Abarkooh, which together with the two-story Windcatcher of Aghazadeh Historical House has made Abarkooh famous.
Although there is still a long way to go for this city to become globally famous, in general, these two phenomena, along with the countless historical monuments of Abarkooh city, have high potentials to attract tourists.
Abarkooh completes the historical atmosphere of Yazd and its old texture with 12 neighborhoods creates a beautiful image of the tradition and times of the past.
There has always been competition between the people of Abarkooh and Shiraz, and the folk verses, each based upon their tastes and talents, have described the beauty of their hometown in their way. Some verses are challenging debates.
Abarkooh is located in the southwest of Yazd province and has a hot, dry, and desert climate, the amount of rain is small and most houses, like other parts of the desert, are made of clay and mud.
About the time of origin and antiquity of Abarkooh, legends and stories are narrated that often do not have an acceptable scientific document and reference, but according to the works and buildings left in the city, we can find the great antiquity of Abarkooh and also its exact date.
In the book “The Story of the Companions of the Clay” written by Habibollah Fazaeli, a narration is mentioned that: In Abarkooh and its 11 surrounding villages, there were great spruce trees that people worshiped them with some special ritual. There lies a link between the cypress tree of Abarkooh and this story.
Andre Godard, the head of the Iranian Archeological Service says that Abarkooh, like many other towns, which were previously inhabited and green, has been gradually abandoned because the only reason for the development of this town was that it happened to be built alongside a famous trade road. the occurrence on the road.”
With the deviation of this commercial way, the resident’s life has been interrupted. The famous caravan route that stretched from the Persian Gulf to the Black Sea started from Hormoz and after passing Kerman, Yazd, Soltanieh, and Tabriz reached the shores of the Black Sea and spices from China, India, musk, gum, silk goods, and pistachios of Kerman were traded.
There are many historical monuments in Abarkooh city, many of which have been registered in the cultural heritage of the country. Also, the 4500-year-old cypress of Abarkooh is one of the natural remnants of the city, which is mostly the most ancient creature alive in Asia. Abarkooh is a city of sights.
Aghazadeh Historical House: If you have ever looked closely at the 2,000-toman Iranian banknote, you will see an old house with a two-story Windcatcher. This house is the same as Aghazadeh Historical House in Abarkooh.
The only two-story Windcatcher in the world that is architecturally very prominent. This Windcatcher on the dome roof of the main hall of the house has 19 air adjustment valves to draw any wind into the house, even with low speed and power, and cool the indoor air.
The roof of this house brings you one of the most beautiful views. According to a foreign traveler who went to the roof of this house and saw a city view built in the heart of the desert with domed houses and mud straw, she said how it resembles Agrabah (from Aladdin). And she was right! The “One Thousand Night and a Night” tale is Persian.
Abarkooh Ancient Cypress Tree: To understand the beauty of this four thousand and five-hundred-year-old cypress, we need to get a little more familiar with the Zoroastrian religion.
Ahura Mazda, the Almighty, and the only God have 7 distinct, each of which is one of Amesh Spenta, or in modern parlance, the angels of God, and each of them shows one of the attributes of Ahura Mazda.
Only the quiddity of God is eternal, and the Amesh Spenta, which represents the immortality of Ahura Mazda, is called “A-Mordad”, to whom the fifth month of the Iranian calendar is dedicated. A-Mordad means the quiddity which is not mortal.
A-Mordad is the guardian of plants on earth, especially evergreen plants, which are a symbol of youth and the immortal aspect of Ahura Mazda. These evergreen trees, especially cypress, are known and respected by Zoroastrians and they were not to be cut down. Many ancient cedars are mentioned in local memoirs and histories, the cutters of which had a bad fate.
Abarkooh Ancient Cypress Tree is the only surviving cypress that dates back 4,500 years, or even 7,000 years according to some Japanese researchers.
The carvings of the cypress on the walls of Persepolis, the symbol of the city of Shiraz, and on the fabrics woven in the name of Cashmere in Yazd, well shows the value of this tree among Iranians and its presence in Iranian culture.
Zoroastrians today continue to use cypress leaves in ceremonies such as weddings in the hope that their newly formed couple will remain in love forever.
Cypress has also entered the literature of Iranian poetry, and whenever a poet wants to portray the beauty and the elegance of the height of their beloved, they like them to a cypress tree.