Islamic Republic of Iran - Bam and its Cultural Landscape

Bam and its Cultural Landscape (2004)
Islamic Republic of Iran

Iran 2004. Souvenir sheet in commemoration of Bam being destroyed by an earthquake in 2003.

Bam is situated in a desert environment on the southern edge of the Iranian high plateau. The origins of Bam can be traced back to the Achaemenid period (6 th to 4 th cent. BC). Its heyday was from the 7 th to 11 th centuries, being at the crossroads of important trade routes and known for the production of silk and cotton garments.

The existence of life in the oasis was based on the underground irrigation canals, the qanāts, of which Bam has preserved some of the earliest evidence in Iran. The Citadel of Bam (Arg-e Bam) is the most representative example of a fortified medieval town built in vernacular technique using mud layers (Chineh).

Iran 2004. Souvenir sheet in commemoration of Bam being destroyed by an earthquake in 2003.

Iran 2004. Close-up of stamps from the souvenir sheet. Stamp #1 of four.

Iran 2004. Close-up of stamps from the souvenir sheet. Stamp #2 of four.

Iran 2004. Close-up of stamps from the souvenir sheet. Stamp #3 of four.

Iran 2004. Close-up of stamps from the souvenir sheet. Stamp #4 of four.

Iran 2004. Close-ups of the individual stamps of the souvenir sheet.

Note:
Bam was destroyed by an earthquake on 26th December 2003. The property was inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger in 2004.

Sources and links:

Other World Heritage Sites in Iran (on this site). Inactive links are not described on postage stamps. Please refer to the UNESCO-listing, section Iran for further information about the individual properties.

Back to index