Rigare Nain Underground Mill, a masterpiece of Dastkand architecture

The historical city of Nain is located in the historical and tourism axis of the east of Isfahan province and is considered one of the largest cities in Isfahan province and is a gateway to the great central desert of Iran.

This city with an area of ​​more than 3500 square kilometers includes two central parts and Anarak and three urban areas called Nain, Bafran and Anarak and eight villages including mountains to the center of Blan village, Baharestan to the center of Kajan village, Bafran to the center of Bafran village, Lai Siah to the center Hamabad village, Shepherds is the center of Shepherds village.

This city is limited to Semnan province from the north, to Greater Khorasan from the east, to Yazd province from the south and to Ardestan and Kuhpayeh cities from the west.

The city has a desert climate and the temperature difference between day and night in the seasons is quite noticeable and its rainfall is very low and the summers are long and without rain. For this reason, the use of water and its gifts in this city has been very important from the distant past, and for this purpose, innovative methods and tools have been used by our artist ancestors in this region.

The historical background of this desert land dates back to more than 3,000 years ago, according to historical sources, but what is more remarkable than anything else is the constant efforts of God-seeking ancestors to create a sustainable culture and civilization in the face of permanent natural problems. Which is part of this continuous effort in the architecture of buildings and also the maximum use of limited resources around it in order to extend the cultural and civilizational life of this land, so that today Nain has one of the richest and most stable civilizations in the desert, Central Plateau of Iran. So far, it has been dedicated to itself.

Rigareh water mill

One of the masterpieces left by the artist of our ancestors is the historical monument of Rigareh water mill in Mohammadieh neighborhood of Nain, which is one of the most important historical monuments of this city in Mohammadieh neighborhood, which is built on the edge of the historical cemetery of this neighborhood.

Mohammadieh as one of the old neighborhoods of Nain in recent years has been a separate village from the city of Nain and about 30 years ago and with the gradual expansion of the city due to the proximity and distance of two kilometers from the city of Nain is part of the city of Nain.

Rigareh Mohammadiyeh water mill was built in the east of the historical cemetery and in 2005 with the follow-ups and studies carried out by the Nain city heritage department and based on the sayings of the elders and the elderly, the location of this building was excavated. When the building was removed from the ground, the necessary excavations were carried out and all the spaces of this old building were exposed.

Rigareh Mohammadiyeh water mill consists of several sections, which can be the main corridor, the entrance corridor and the main entrance door of the mill, the main space of the mill, the section of the mill wheel, water outlet, oven, communication channel between the aqueduct and the oven and air vents. .

Rigareh water mill aqueduct is known as “Kaykhosrow” aqueduct and is one of the very old aqueducts in the area. This aqueduct is currently running and irrigates the agricultural lands of Shahdad region.

The length of Rigareh Mohammadiyeh water mill is 110 meters and its depth is 30 meters. The mill wheel is located at the lowest point of the mill and this place is made by a small rectangular chamber that includes the main area of ​​the mill.

The main entrance of the mill starts from the ground and continues to the main, where part of the section is now open and the other part is covered with stone and brick.

In the past, all the entrances to the connecting corridor had no roof and roof, but in 1984, when this part was excavated, due to its high height and the possibility of life-threatening, it was repaired and covered with stone and brick.

The point that makes this mill famous is the use of aqueduct water and launching the stone of this water mill at a depth of 30 meters, because most water mills are built along rivers and streams, but the furnace of this mill feeds deep into the ground and from the aqueduct. .

Fortunately, with the follow-ups done, this building was registered in the list of national monuments of Iran in 2010.

* Report from Mohammad Javad Majmadipour, Public Relations Manager of Nain Heritage, Cultural, Tourism and Handicrafts Department