Behshahr

History

In 17th century AD, Ashraf became a site for the Safavid shah, Abbas the Great to build palaces and gardens, because of his devotion to his mother, who was born in Ashraf. The palace was named DiwanKhaneh mansion () and was visited by Pietro Della Valle. In his travelogue he wrote: This garden, which is called Bagh-e Shah or Diwankhaneh, includes a square located at the end of the plain and at the foot of the hills full of trees and behind the palace. It is on the top of these hills that the king ordered to build many houses which are considered as garden mansions. Diwankhaneh is located in the middle of the garden and its length is three times its width. The front of this building is completely open, but at the back and on the sides has a wall covered with many windows. The floor of the building is two steps above the ground level, and the open part of the building faces north, that is, the back to the entrance door. There is a long paved street in front of the building, in the middle of which there is a stream, and water is constantly flowing towards this stream from the pond built in front of Diwankhanah. In 1832 David Brewster wrote in The Edinburgh Encyclopædia that "Ashraff is celebrated as the favourite residence of Shah Abbas, and enjoys the only good harbour on the southern side of the Caspian". Prior to the arrival of Shah Abbas I Ashraf was a village of no distinction. The location took the fancy of Abbas I who made it an imperial residence in 1613 and he commissioned the construction of a palace and gardens. The heyday of the town was from that time until the middle of the 18th century. At the time that Sir Thomas Herbert visited the palace in 1628 there were about 2,000 families living in the town that at that time contained at least 300 public bath…

Most-observed species

• Eurasian Magpie

  Pica pica (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  97
• Hooded Crow

  Corvus cornix Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  78
• Common Chaffinch

  Fringilla coelebs Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  75
• European Robin

  Erithacus rubecula (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  68
• House Sparrow

  Passer domesticus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  63
• Great Tit

  Parus major Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  58
• Eurasian Blackbird

  Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  49
• Eurasian Marsh-Harrier

  Circus aeruginosus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  48

Most recent

• M 4.6 — 2026-07-31
  39 km WNW of Dāmghān, Iran
• M 4.4 — 2026-05-16
  25 km ENE of Behshahr, Iran
• M 4 — 2026-02-20
  29 km NNE of Jūybār, Iran
• M 4.1 — 2025-12-09
  64 km N of Nekā, Iran
• M 4 — 2025-11-28
  18 km S of Nekā, Iran
• M 4.4 — 2025-09-27
  54 km NNE of Behshahr, Iran