Chehel Dokhtar ( Forty Girls) Tower
Chehel Dokhtar tower that is almost 1000 years old. It is one of the few towers that have remained completely intact during many years and natural disasters. It has very beautiful and eye-catching brick decorations.
Damghan city, which is located at a distance of 118 km from the center of Semnan city, has valuable historical works and monuments. It is interesting to know that the oldest mosque in Iran, called Tarikhaneh Mosque, is located in Damghan city. Among the artifacts and tools discovered in Damghan city, it indicates the growth and prosperity of this city during the reign of Al-Buyeh, Al-Ziyar.
In fact, the 5th and 6th centuries can be considered the period of expansion and development of the art of brickwork, so most of the tombs and mosques built during this period, such as the Isfahan Jame Mosque, the tomb of Pir Alamdar Damghan, and the Forty Girls Tower, are decorated with the art of brickwork. Among the tower tombs and tombs in Damghan, such as Toghrel Tower, Mehmandoost Tower, and Forty Girls Tower, it has a more impressive beauty.
Damghan Tower of Chehel Dokhtar was built so skillfully that it has remained without any damage to show the art and skill of the architects of its time. This beautiful tower, that dates back to the Seljuk period, is located in the courtyard of Imamzadeh Jafar in Damghan city and was built by the order of Abu Shuja’ Isfahani.
Due to the high age of this building, it is not far from expected that this tower was also made of raw clay, which was partly destroyed due to the passage of time, and again in the 4th and 5th centuries by the order of Abu Shuja’, this building was rebuilt according to its original design. It was placed, but this time using bricks that are resistant to water and pressure.
The outer perimeter of this building is 32 meters, although it is considered a small tower in terms of area, but what makes this building famous is the way of brickwork, inscriptions, architecture, and the type of materials, which made Chehal Dokhtar Tower stand without damage for about 1000 years. This tower,that is actually a family tomb, is located at a distance of 275 cm from the tomb.
Damghan’s Chehel Dokhtar Tower is built in a circular shape and at a height of 15 meters from the ground. The inner diameter of this building is 5.2 meters and its outer diameter is 7.8 meters. If you pay attention to the appearance of the Chehel Dokhtar Tower, you will notice that it consists of two parts. The main part, about two-thirds of the ground surface, which is simply bricked, and the other part is an inscription written in Kufic script, and decorative brick strips are placed above and below it. Finally, there is a cone-shaped dome that is placed on this tomb and its brickwork is simple. The bricks of Chehel Dokhtar tower are placed on top of each other so skillfully and delicately that it is as if no mortar was used in its construction.
This tower has a wooden door located in the southern part of the tower, which was built and installed in recent years. Before entering the tower, there is another inscription above the door, which is also written in Kufic script, and it is said that the name of the builder of Forty Girls Tower is engraved on it.
The entrance part of this tower is 2 and a half meters high and about 2 meters wide. Since the lines around the tador and the inscription above the door of this mosque are in Kufic script, it is difficult to read its text. Inside Damghan’s Chehel Dokhtar Tower, right in the middle of it, there is a simple, plaster grave, which is 30 cm above the ground.
