Khan Lenjan Castle of Isfahan: An Archaeological Survey

The Khan Lenjan castle (today known as Qaleh-Bozi) is one of the mountainous fortifications of Isfahan province located on top of the three fields of Qaleh-Bozi Mountain about10 km north east of Mobarakeh. The castle probably was built in Sassanid period and regarding to its strategic position, it was reconstructed during the Islamic periods. Owing to insufficient information on the architectural monuments of the castle (which has been built on three different levels), the present survey aimed to provide a comprehensive and accurate map of the architectural spaces given the topographic conditions of Qaleh-Bozi Mountain. Also in order to identify the reason(s) for the castle establishment, a comprehensive study based on relative written sources and documents was carried out. According to data obtained from the survey and mapping, the area of the castle is about one hectare and the fortifications include a high castle at the mountain’s highest point, and a central fortress and a smaller castle at lower parts. In building Khan Lenjan castle, like other mountainous castles, it has been tried to make the best of the natural topography of Qale-bozi Mountain; the architectural plan of the castle lacks an orderly geometric pattern. Based on data extracted from the textual documents, it seems that the Khan Lenjan castle has had different functions in different periods. In fact, in addition to its safekeeping function, Khan Lenjan castle, in the course of different times, has had residential, governmental, military or defensive roles as well.