Sherwana Castle

Sherwana castle was built in the nineteenth century by a chief of the Jaff, one of the largest Kurdish tribal confederations, on the bank of the Sirwan river at Kalar, and it served as the family seat: a two-storey stone building around a courtyard with arched galleries, guest halls and living quarters, plain in finish and solid in construction. After decades of neglect it was restored and now houses a museum of the Garmian region with ethnographic material, weapons, costume and photographs, along with archaeological finds from the surrounding area. The riverbank around it has been laid out as a park. The Garmian is hot lowland country between the mountains and the plain, and Kalar is its main town.

History

The castle, ancestral home of the Jaff family, one of the largest Kurdish tribal confederations, was built in the 1800s by Mohamed Pasha Jaff, a Kurdish pasha in the service of the Ottoman Empire (Wikipedia, Sherwana Castle).

Highlights

• The stone castle - two storeys of arched galleries around a court.
• The regional museum - ethnography, weapons and costume of Garmian.
• The riverside park - the laid-out bank of the Sirwan.
• Jaff tribal history - the family and confederation the castle belonged to.

When to go

November to March; the Garmian lowlands are extremely hot from May to September. The museum keeps daytime hours and may close on a weekly rest day.

Practical notes

Restoration has been extensive and much of the fabric is renewed. The museum is small and labelling is in Kurdish and Arabic. Kalar is a plain town with few other attractions. The drive from Sulaymaniyah takes about two hours.

Nearby

Darbandikhan lies north; Kirkuk is northwest.

Key facts