The Decline of Iranshahr by Peter Christensen;

Author:Peter Christensen;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bloomsbury UK
Published: 2016-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 14

Kirman

As indicated by the tax assessments, Kirman occupied a somewhat peripheral position within Iranshahr. It was an arid land of dispersed settlements, far from the imperial centers, a refuge for rebels and dissidents. Its resources were modest, and for long periods the local rulers were left reasonably undisturbed.1

In physical terms the land consisted, roughly speaking, of two parts. “Warm Kirman,” Garmkirman, i.e. the region south of the central Kuh-é Lalehzar massif, was watered by several streams, but as these were mostly seasonal, many settlements were supplied with extra water from qanats or cisterns. “Cold Kirman” (the sardsir), north of the central massif, was a region of desolate basins and valleys facing the great desert Dasht-é Lut. Settlement in pre-historical and early historical times was here limited to a few small, natural oases.

In Sassanian and early Muslim times both parts of Kirman saw considerable settlement expansion. Later, however, there was a divergence: the south, which apparently offered the best conditions for settlement, declined, while settlement in the north, inspite of the inhospitable environment, the frequent natural disasters and wars, proved resilient.

1. The Colonization of North Kirman

The north of Kirman was one of those arid areas on the edge of the great Iranian deserts which the qanat-technology opened up for colonization. Expansion of settlement began in earnest in the 3rd century when Ardashir I, immediately after his conquest of Kirman, founded a new town, Veh-Ardashir, on the edge of the Dasht-é Lut. The name was eventually transformed into Bardasir or Guwashir.2 Ardashir’s intention was no doubt to establish a military base, but in this barren, isolated country even a small garrison could subsist only in an oasis, so this had literally to be constructed together with the town. In the 10th century Veh-Ardashir, which had then just become the capital of all Kirman, is described a small heavily fortified town surrounded by gardens and watered by many qanats, wells, and cisterns. We have no earlier descriptions, but the Sassanian town must have looked much the same.3

Local traditions has it that a Sassanian governor founded the town of Mahan at the foot of Mount Djupar, southeast of Veh-Ardashir.4 Further colonization of “Cold Kirman” took place in the 4th century when Shapur II settled prisoners of war from his Arabian campaign in “Aban.” Le Strange identifies this place with present-day Anar, a small qanat-watered oasis on the edge of the desert between Yazd and Rafsandjan.5

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