Kohneh Qala is an ancient castle, which is located on a hill in the western part of Khiav Chai River in Meshginshahr. The approximate height of this castle is 1416 meters above sea level and is located on the north side of the entrance gate of Ardabil. The plan of the castle is an irregular trapezoid along the northwest and southwest. The structures of the castle walls are made of stone, gypsum and lime mortar and its concretes are made of clay and mud.
This building was registered in 1345 Hijri with the number 618 in the list of national monuments.
The Kohneh Qala belongs to which period of Iranian history?
On the northern side of the Kohneh Qala, there is an inscription on which the date 347 AD (during the reign of Shapur II Sassanid) is engraved. This inscription is the first inscription of the Sassanid era discovered in Azerbaijan. According to this inscription, the old castle was built by order of Narsa Hormoz, the local ruler of Meshkinshahr region, and its construction took six years and several repairs were done, the last repair of this castle is during the Zandieh era. According to historical sources, Nader Shah Afshar stayed in this castle for some time when he returned from Moghan plain.
Archaeological excavations at the Kohneh Qala have uncovered cultural artifacts, pea and gray pottery, and bronze metal belonging to the Urartian people.
Sassanid inscription
The mentioned inscription belongs to the Sassanid period, contains an inscription with dimensions of 2.30 x 2.30 cm in two columns of 15 lines on the left and a 6-line column on the right. A total of 21 lines have been engraved in the Pahlavi script of the Second Sassanid Shapur era on the stone inscription.
This inscription was discovered in the summer of 1345 Hijri by Mr. Kambakhsh Fard, an Iranian archaeologist in Khiav. The photo of this inscription was given to several calligraphers at the University of Tehran and abroad in 1346 Hijri, and among them, Dr. Gird, a famous German archaeologist, succeeded in translating the text engraved on this stone and personally in order to obtain more information about the accuracy of the text of the inscription, he came to Meshkinshahr in the summer of 1346 Hijri and conducted close studies.
The subject of this article is about the order and date of construction of the castle by Narsa Hormoz.
The surface layers and inscriptions of this inscription have been lost over time as a result of natural and abnormal erosion.
Cost and time table to visit Kohneh Qala
Ticket price: Free
Opening hours: 24 huors a day
English and Farsi address of Kohneh Qala
Kohneh Qala, Meshkinshahr entrance, Meshkinshahr city, Ardabil province
استان اردبیل، شهرستان مشکین شهر، ورودی مشکین شهر، کهنه قلعه
