The Zoroastrian fire temple, also called the “Fire Temple of Bahram” or “Fire Temple of Varhoram”, is one of the sacred buildings of the Zoroastrians located in Yazd province.

The fire temple consists of a garden and a building where sacred fire is kept in. The architectural design of the fire temple is a reminder of the Persian temples in India. The building is located in the middle of the courtyard with evergreen trees and eight stairs to take you to the main entrance.

The Farvahar statue and the bell rock paintings have given a magnificent beauty to the building. The floral patterns of the walls are the art of Isfahanian artists who came to Yazd for this purpose. The interior is decorated with pictures of Zoroaster and some holy verses of Avesta. The large circular pool at the entrance of this temple is full of different coins, a costume of visitors to make a wish and throw a coin. The Persian-Indian association built the temple about 80 years ago in a donated land.

During the reign of the Sasanians in Iran, three fires were more important than the others because of their long history which are as follows: Fire of Varhoram, Fire of Adouran and Fire of Dadgah. One of the temples that Varhoram was kept in it was Azar Faranbagh Fire Temple located in Karyan town.

In the 10^th century AD, the Karyan fire was brought to Yazd to be kept from the enemies that attacked the place. The temple was destroyed and the Zoroastrians took their holy fire and sheltered it in the cave of Eshkaft Yazdan in a mountain, located between Aqda and Pars Banoo. The sacred fire was hidden in the cave for 30 years, and then it was moved to Zoroastrian villages around Yazd for 200 years.

Years passed and more Zoroastrians moved to the place and the conditions became safe to move the fire to the village of Turkabad near Ardakan. 300 years later, the sacred fire was taken back to Sharif Abad, and about 1775, it was returned to Yazd to be held in a secret house until Reza Shah Pahlavi formally gave the permission to build a fire temple.

The fire is kept in a large bronze container and a glass compartment in a relatively large room away from the sun surrounded by the praying hall. A person titled “Hirbad” is responsible for keeping the fire clear. The fire temple of Bahram Yazd, which is listed on the list of Iranian national monuments, has opened its doors to tourists in recent years and attracts many domestic and foreign tourists.

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Takht- e Soleyman was a principal sacred place of Zoroastrianism, the Sassanid (224 – 650 CE) State faith that influenced monotheism. The general layout of the site became an architectural reference for East and West architecture, especially Islamic architecture. Takht-e Soleyman also has strong symbolic significance about the continuation of a cult related to fire and water over the last 2,500 years.

The site consists of an artesian spring-lake, Azar Goshnasp Zoroastrian fire temple, a temple dedicated to Anahita (the divinity of the waters), a Sasanian royal sanctuary, an ancient volcano, Zendan-e Soleyman (Prison of Solomon), and remains of temples older than burgeon of Zoroastrianism.

Located in ancient Ganzak or Shiz, Azar Goshnasp fire temple housed one of the three revered Great Fires dedicated to the warrior class of the Sasanid. In 624 AC the Roman Heraclius attacked Ganzak and destroyed Azar Goshnasp. The chahartaq (an architectural unit consisted of four barrel vaults and a dome used for keeping the sacred fire in Zoroastrianism) with surrounding corridors is located on the north side of the spring-lake.

The biggest construction on the site was Sassanid royal court with rooms of different size surrounding an iwan. The three rooms at its western front have wide openings to the outside perhaps for ceremonial purposes, and the iwan opens to the north side of the lake. Because of destructions and reconstructions in the Sassanid era, different materials including mud bricks, baked bricks, and stone are used in the buildings.

The site obtained its name after the Arab conquests. According to folkloric legend, King Solomon (whose name is come in Hebrew Bible, Old Testament, and Quran) incarcerated monsters inside a nearby 100 meters-deep crater known as Zendan-e Soleyman or prison of Solomon.

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