Alborz

Alborz chain, seen from Tehran

Alborz (in Persian البرز), also written as Alburz or Elburz, is a mountain range in northern Iran, stretching from the borders of Armenia in the north-west to the southern end of the Caspian Sea, where also Tehran and Iran's highest peak, Damavand (5604m) are, and ending in the east at the borders of Turkmenistan and Afghanistan.

The Alborz mountain range forms a barrier between the south Caspian and the Qazvin-Tehran plateau. It is only 60-130 km wide and consists of sedimentary series dating from Upper Devonian to Oligocene, prevalently jurassic limestone over a granite core.

Alborz enjoys a central role in the historical texts of Iran such as the Shahnama, and also in Persian mythology.

Also due to its great snowy winters there are several ski resorts that some of them are among the best in the world. Some of most important ones are: Dizin, Shemshak, Tochal, and Darbandsar.

It should not be confused with Mount Elbrus in the Caucasus Mountains, which also derives its name from the legendary mountain Harā Bərəzaitī of Persian mythology.

Alborz Mountains underneath clouds seen from Tehran

Contents

1 Alborz mounts, summits, and attractions
2
3 Source
4 External links

Alborz mounts, summits, and attractions

Mount Damavand, Iran's tallest mountain is located in this range.

In June of 2006, a team of religious scholars led by Bob Cornuke of the BASE Institute claimed to have found Noah's Ark in the Alborz mountains.[link][link][link] Expedition members describe a large object of petrified wood. No geologists or archaeologists were included in the expedition.

Source

North, S.J.R., Guide to Biblical Iran, Rome 1956, p. 50

External links

[Maps, Photos and a List of peaks]
[Alborz] entries in the Encyclopedia Iranica

From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.