Paskeh Band Ancient Dam – Hormozgan (Band-e Paskeh)
Band-e Paskeh · Paskeh Dam
Sasanian (Shapur I–II)·Sasanian Persian·🇮🇷 Hormozgan Province, Rudan County, Paskeh valley of Minab Rud, Iran
About
About Paskeh Band Ancient Dam – Hormozgan (Band-e Paskeh)
A 180-m long, 8-m high Sasanian gravity dam across the Paskeh gorge of the Minab Rud, built of uncoursed sandstone with sarooj mortar to store 300,000 m³ for the Minab plain palm groves and the Hormuz hinterland. The dam features a stepped downstream face and central spillway 22 m wide with lead-clamp ashlar, dated to Shapur I–II phase (240–380 CE) via Sasanian drahms sealed in mortar. Unlike Gotarzes' large Minab dams, Paskeh fed the smaller Paskeh plain via a 4-km canal with distribution cisterns, documented by Kleiss 1970s and ICHO 2009.
Why it mattersSouthernmost Sasanian dam system linked to Hormuz maritime hinterland irrigation.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Sasanian–Hormuz water administration
Theories
- 01Royal palm plantation estate
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c.240 – 380 CE
- Period
- Sasanian (Shapur I–II)
- Culture
- Sasanian Persian
- Builders
- Sasanian royal engineers (Shapur)
- Purpose
- Palm grove seasonal storage for Minab plain
- Abandoned
- c.900 CE Abbasid neglect
- Rediscovered
- 1973 W. Kleiss Hormozgan survey; 2009 ICHO salvage
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
260 CE
Shapur I dam construction with lead-clamp spillway
1973
Kleiss inventories Hormozgan dams
On the ground
Structures & features
27.1800° N · 57.0800° E · 85 m · 2 mapped features
Dam Crest & Stepped Face
hydraulic180-m crest with stepped downstream apron
27.1810° N · 57.0810° ESpillway P-1 Lead-Clamp
hydraulic22-m spillway with lead-clamped ashlar
27.1790° N · 57.0790° E