The Persian Qanats

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The Persian Qanats
UNESCO world heritage UNESCO World Heritage Emblem
مسیر توریستی غال شغال. Jpg
Qasabeh Qanat in Gonabad
National territory: IranIran Iran
Type: Culture
Criteria : (iii) (iv)
Surface: 14,565 ha
Buffer zone: 355,249 ha
Reference No .: 1506
UNESCO region : Asia and Pacific
History of enrollment
Enrollment: 2016  ( session 40 )

The Persian Qanate is a UNESCO listed World Heritage Site in Iran . The serial World Heritage site comprises eleven qanats , which are used to obtain drinking and industrial water from the groundwater in higher regions.

background

Basic structure of a qanat

The system of water abstraction by qanats was developed several thousand years ago in the area of Iran and spread from there. Qanats are found mainly in settlements that are close to mountains with relatively high levels of precipitation. The water that goes down, for example through incline rain , seeps away and collects in an aquifer . In the settlement area, the aquifer is often too deep under the surface to be able to extract water from it with a well.

Therefore, water is taken from the aquifer further up the slope and fed into the settlement via an underground qanat channel, which has a much lower gradient than the slope and the aquifer. Due to its slight gradient, the Qanat Canal emerges from the slope at one point, and the water can be drawn off there to supply the settlement with water or to irrigate fields. Vertical access shafts were initially used to build the sewer and then also to maintain and clean it. The underground routing of the canal reduces water loss through evaporation, which is particularly advantageous in hot, dry areas.

enrollment

The Persian qanats were entered on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2016 based on a resolution of the 40th session of the World Heritage Committee. The eleven qanats selected for the World Heritage, with their respective sources and structures, illustrate the variety of techniques used and the variance of the canal systems in terms of their geographical distribution, length and time of origin. Some of the structures are also of particular importance due to their connection with certain rituals or religious currents, for example in the case of the Qanats Ebrahim Abad and Mozd Abad. The entry was made on the basis of criteria (iii) and (iv).

(iii): The Persian qanat system is an exceptional testimony to the tradition of supplying water to arid areas to support settlements. The technological and communal achievements of the qanats play an important role in the formation of various civilizations. Their crucial importance for the larger arid region is expressed in the name of the desert plateau of Iran, which is known as the "Qanat civilization". The spread of primary settlements on alluvial fans of the inner plateau and the deserts of Iran is directly linked to the distribution pattern of the qanat system throughout the country. The system also represents an exceptionally vibrant cultural tradition of community water resource management.

(iv): The Persian qanat system is an outstanding example of a technological ensemble that illustrates significant stages in the history of human settlement in arid and semi-arid regions. Based on complex calculations and extraordinary architectural qualities, the water was collected and transported over long distances by gravity alone, and these transport systems were maintained for centuries and sometimes even millennia. The qanat system made settlements and agriculture possible, but also inspired the creation of a desert-specific architecture and landscape style that not only includes the qanats themselves, but also the associated structures such as water reservoirs, mills, irrigation systems and gardens.

scope

The world heritage site comprises eleven separate areas. These have a total protection area of ​​14,565 ha . The individual protection areas are each surrounded by buffer zones, which have a total area of ​​355,249 hectares.

Ref.No. designation location Protection area Buffer zone
1506-001 Qasabeh Qanat Gonabad
Province Razavi-Khorasan
( geographic coordinates )		 4,492 ha 25,805 ha
1506-002 Qanat from Baladeh Eslamiyeh
Province South Khorasan
( geographic coordinates )		 2,757 ha 19,321 ha
1506-003 Qanat from Zārtsch Zārtsch
Province Yazd
( geographic coordinates )		 3,984 ha 125,162 ha
1506-004 Hasam-Abade-Moshir-Qanat 2,759 ha 121,662 ha
1506-005 Ebrahim Abad Qanat 1,238 ha 23,655 ha
1506-006 Qanat from Vazvan 5 ha 29,631 ha
1506-007 Mozd Abad Qanat 3,636 ha 29,631 ha
1506-008 Qanat of the moon Ardestān
Province Isfahan
( geographic coordinates )		 5 ha 3,047 ha
1506-009 Qanat from Gohariz Jupār
Province of Kerman
( geographic coordinates )		 151 ha 2,980 ha
1506-010 Ghazem-Abad-Qanat 15 ha 80 ha
1506-011 Akbar-Abad-Qanat 15 ha 80 ha
To hum: 14,565 ha 355,249 ha

literature

  • The Persian qanat irrigation system . In: The UNESCO World Heritage . Kunth Verlag, Munich 2017, ISBN 978-3-95504-413-8 , pp. VIII .

Web links

Commons : The Persian Qanat  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Official names: English The Persian Qanat , French Le qanat perse , German name according to the World Heritage List. In: www.unesco.de. German UNESCO Commission, accessed on June 1, 2018 .
  2. ↑ a b The Persian Qanat. In: whc.unesco.org. UNESCO World Heritage Center, accessed January 21, 2018 .
  3. ↑ Decision: 40 COM 8B.21. In: whc.unesco.org. UNESCO World Heritage Center, 2016, accessed June 11, 2018 .
  4. ↑ The Persian Qanats: Masterpieces of Technical Skill. In: www.unesco.de. German UNESCO Commission, accessed on June 11, 2018 .
  5. ↑ The Persian Qanat. Maps. In: whc.unesco.org. UNESCO World Heritage Center, accessed January 22, 2018 .