Kasaei Castle

Iran, Iran

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Kasaei Castle, more accurately known as Karshahi Castle (also spelled Karshahi or Karshahi Qaleh), is a massive adobe and brick fort in Aran va Bidgol County, Isfahan province, Iran, located near Yakh‑Ab Mountain and the village of Abuzidabad, and it is considered the largest adobe castle still standing in Iran after the destruction of Arg‑e Bam in 2003.

The castle’s foundation dates to the pre‑Islamic, Sasanian era, but it was extensively built and renovated in later periods, with its most significant fortification and final major work carried out during the Qajar era, giving it the character of a strong Qajar fortress. Its architecture is purely defensive: the fort is roughly square, with each side about 210 meters, surrounded by two thick outer walls and a moat between them, and encircled by turrets every 10 meters where shooters could stand, while the main wall has five towers, the highest of which reaches about 12 meters.

Inside, the castle has two courtyards (a central one and a “slaves” courtyard), a dozen or so rooms of about 10 square meters each, a porch with winter rooms at the southern entrance, an escape route on the northern side, and underground tunnels used for raids on besieging forces, as well as hidden access to qanats (water channels) that ensured the occupants always had drinking water without leaving the fort.