Radakan Tower (Chenaran County)

Radakan tower (Persian: برج رادکان) is a 13th-century tower near Chenaran in Razavi Khorasan province, Iran.[1]

Radakan Tower
برج رادکان
General information
CountryIran
Completed1262
Height35 meters

History

The inscription on the tower indicates that the tower was constructed in year 660 of the Lunar Hijri calendar, roughly equal to 1262 CE. This corresponds with the date of the construction of Maragheh observatory, suggesting that they are related and the tower has had uses in astronomy.[2] The architecture of the tower further confirms this, having a dodecagonal base, corresponding to the 12 months of the year.[3]

Some researchers, such as André Godard, have suggested that the building has been a mausoleum, possibly belonging to the Ilkhanate ruler Arghun or to a woman.[3]

It was enlisted among the national heritage sites of Iran with the registration number 146 on 27 December 1931.

Architecture

The bottom 5.2 metres (17 ft) of the 35-metre-tall (115 ft) tower is a dodecagon, above that there are a series of 36 semicircular columns which lead to a conical dome on top.[3]

References
  1. "رادكان؛ تنها برجي كه چهار فصل سال كبيسه و آغاز نوروز را نشان مي‌دهد" [Radakan, the only tower that can show the four seasons, leap years and the beginning of Nowruz.]. ایسنا (in Persian). 2006-05-17. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
  2. "برج تاریخی رادکان شگفتی معماری خواجه نصیرالدین طوسی" [Historical tower of Radaka, a wonder of architecture by Khajeh nasir ad din tusi]. ایسنا (in Persian). 2013-02-23. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
  3. "آشنایی با برج رادکان - خراسان رضوی" [Introduction to the Radakan tower, Razavi Khorasan province.]. همشهری آنلاین (in Persian). 2011-06-06. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
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