Qomrud Castle

Iran, Iran

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Qomrud Castle is a historic fortress in Qomrud Village, part of Qom County in Qom Province, Iran, located to the north of the White Mountain (Kuh‑e Sefid) near the village.

The site is believed to have been originally built in the Parthian (Ashkanid) era as a defensive fortress, but its surviving structure mainly reflects later periods, especially the Safavid dynasty and the Qajar period, when it was repaired and expanded. The castle is described as a two‑story building with a central courtyard surrounded by rooms, and it features traditional architectural elements such as a water‑court (howzkhaneh) and wind‑catchers (badgirs), built mainly from mudbrick and clay, typical of local Qom and central Iranian architecture.

Over time, the fortress served both military and residential functions, including use as a sheep‑fold and as a residence for local families and officials such as Mirza Nizam Gafari during the Qajar era, and it remains near the historic Kaj Caravanserai on the road between Qom and Tehran. In recent decades, expansion of Qomrud village and lack of systematic conservation have caused significant damage to the castle, with large parts of its walls and structures destroyed, so that today only fragments of the walls and pillars remain, and the site has not yet been officially registered in Iran’s national heritage list.