Takht-e Soleyman

Takht-e Soleyman sits at about 2,200 metres on a natural mound built up by mineral deposits from a spring, with a lake around a hundred metres deep in the middle of it, and around that lake the Sassanids built one of the three great fire temples of the empire, Adur Gushnasp, associated with kings and warriors, where rulers came on foot after coronation. The complex has an oval enclosure wall with thirty-eight towers, the temple, halls and a later Ilkhanid palace built into the same site in the thirteenth century. The lake drains through channels and the deposits it lays down have raised the whole mound over millennia. Nearby stands Zendan-e Soleyman, a hollow cone of the same mineral origin with a deep shaft inside.

What you actually see

• The crater lake - spring water about a hundred metres deep at the centre.
• The oval enclosure wall - thirty-eight towers around the temple precinct.
• Sassanid fire temple remains - the sanctuary of Adur Gushnasp.
• Zendan-e Soleyman - a hollow mineral cone with a deep shaft nearby.

When to go

May to October; the site is at altitude and winters are severe with snow closing the roads. Half a day. Mornings for light on the water. It is remote and receives few visitors.

Honest expectations

It is a long drive from anywhere and public transport is minimal. Buildings are at foundation and low wall level. There is no shade at altitude and the sun is strong. Interpretation is limited. Winter access is unreliable.

Nearby

Takab is the nearest town; Zanjan lies east.