Sar Yazd Castle (Saryazd Fortress) | Mehriz, Yazd, Iran

Do not miss Sar Yazd Castle, a 1400-year-old beauty in Mehriz, Yazd Province. The compact architecture, narrow alleys, and 3-story houses within the adobe fence are only a piece of the beauties of this historical gem. Saryazd castle also features “the first safe deposit box of the world”. Like to find out more? Then join me for an interesting exploration around the secrets of this magnetic attraction.

The Facade of Sar Yazd Castle – Saryazd Castle Photos

Why Visit Sar Yazd Castle?

• Sar Yazd Castle is one of the oldest and largest safe deposit boxes in the world.
• Saryazd castle is one of the most beautiful castles in the country.
• Walking through the narrow corridors of this castle, reminds us of an attractive and commendable history that is so interesting in the modern days.

The Architecture of Saryazd Castle

The main and central area of Sar Yazd Castle included the storerooms, houses and rooms of the citizens. The entrance door is on the north side. In front of this door and around the castle, there is a moat (a deep and wide ditch surrounding a castle) to protect the castle.

Passing the main door, you will enter the hashti (the entrance hall). In the hashti area, you encounter three other doors. Two doors open to the left and right and they lead to the area between the outer fence and the inner wall of the castle. This area has been a place for keeping cattle and livestock. The third door is in front of the main gate and leads to the castle residence.

The existence of 2 or 3 floor houses is another wonder of this citadel. On both sides of the side alleys, there are people’s houses. Very narrow adobe stairs connect the floors. You will see arched corridors that branch off into two passages on both sides. Upon entering each of these passages, you will see many chambers. The architectural grandeur of these chambers will surprise you.

In Sar Yazd Castle, you can see four types of towers that two of them are on the main gate. These two main towers are circular and surrounded the castle building. They were for guarding and defending the castle. The other towers are square and they are on both sides of the outer courtyard.

The interior area of Saryazd castle has a special arrangement. Complexity of the interior spaces, towers, fortifications, simple and dignified geometric decorations and the beautiful building in the heart of the plain made the castle one of the most beautiful castles in the country.

Sar Yazd Castle – Saryazd Castle Photos

A Safe Made of Adobe – Saryazd Castle

In fact, Sar Yazd Castle is one of the oldest and largest safes in history. It is expected that the main use of this castle was as a defense. So, people used this castle to maintain their property and food. About 468 chambers have been identified in this castle. Each chamber belonged to a family and had a separate door and key to store the villagers’ valuables. You may wonder why these chambers have windows, fireplaces or wall decorations if they are just a place to store property and food! The answer is that; these chambers were not the place where the people lived in ancient times. As a matter of fact, they were a refuge for emergency times. When enemies invaded the city, families took refuge in these places and protected both their lives and properties.

The Defense System of the First Safe in the World – Saryazd

Naturally, special security measures have been devised to ensure the security of the world’s oldest safe deposit box. Multi-layered defenses were provided for the security of Sar Yazd Castle. The moat that is around the castle is the first defensive layer. In the past, it was full of water. The second part of the defense system was the two fences of the castle. They are two concentric nested walls with watchtowers.

The third defense method is the holes for watching and shooting. You can find these holes in the three floors of Sar Yazd Castle. The roof top of the towers is surrounded with 1.5-meter-high walls that were used as shelters. Beneath these walls, they made holes with a steep slope outward. They used them to pour ash, hot sand, boiling water and molten bitumen on the attackers. If the enemy set fire to the doors, they poured water from this part and the fire would be extinguished. The second and third entrance doors were covered with metal. In this way, in addition to strengthening, they also prevented them from burning.

And the last defensive method is that Sar Yazd Fortress had two main doors and a support door. The main door was movable. The guards opened and closed it from the bottom to the top by special ropes and pulleys. This door was open to citizens. The second door was right behind the main door and was a backup door. If the enemies could break the main door, the guards would quickly close the backup door and make it impossible to enter the castle. With such special arrangements, nestled tunnels and tall towers and ramparts, Saryazd castle had become an impregnable place for a long time.

Sar Yazd Castle – Saryazd Castle

The Cistern of Sar Yazd Fortress – Saryazd Castle

The cistern of Sar Yazd Castle is a notable part. It was on the left side of the entrance and behind the vestibule. This cistern was had a roof, but now there is no trace of it. The cistern was refilled in two ways: The first way was through a duct that was connected to the cistern by the moat. If it was necessary, the duct was opened and the cistern was filled. The second way was the time that the enemy invaded and there was the possibility of contamination of the moat water. At this time, they did not fill the cistern with moat water. They met their needs by collecting water from the roofs and the interior parts of the castle. So, the people of the castle could fulfill all their needs and cut off their communication with the outside world.

Sar Yazd Castle – Saryazd Castle

More about Sar Yazd Castle – Saryazd

Visiting hours

8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Visiting days

Every day except some holidays

Things to Do in Saryazd Castle

From the top floor of Sar Yazd Castle you can see the unique area and the domed ceilings of the chambers. Plus, in a corner of the eastern courtyard, there are metal tables and benches for serving soup and tea. But the interesting thing about this small part is that their decoration is along with all kinds of old tools and boxes.

Nearby Attractions

So many wonderful and popular attractions are near Sar Yazd Fortress. Today, nature lovers and tourists can go beyond the beauties of the nearby desert and do desert sports such as off-roading, motorcycling, and observing the stars. On the other hand, there are other cultural attractions near this historical castle. The most fascinating of these sites is Pahlavanpour Garden, one of Iran’s 9 UNESCO-listed Persian Gardens. Also, the beautiful Zeinodin Caravanserai is only 30 km to Mehriz.

Where to Eat Nearby

Bagh Ahoo Restaurant

Lale Restaurant

Shah Abbasi Restaurant

Like to visit Sar Yazd Castle?

Then join our Fahraj Desert & Cultural Attractions excursion tour.