Description of the attraction
The Jam minaret is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, located in the remote and inaccessible Shahrak region of the Ghor province, on the banks of the Hari River.
The 62-meter minaret was built around 1190. It is made of light fired brick and is famous for its ornate masonry and glazed tiled decorations, consisting of alternating stripes of Kufi and Naskhi inscriptions, figured designs and suras from the Koran. Inside, an amazing double spiral staircase has been preserved, unknown in Europe until the Renaissance. The circular minaret rests on an octagonal base, it had two wooden balconies and a lantern at the top.
Jam Minaret belongs to a group of 60 minarets and towers erected between the 11th and 13th centuries in Central Asia, Iran and Afghanistan. It is assumed that the religious buildings were erected to commemorate the victory of Islam, and the function of the towers was a watchtower and for orientation on the ground. The surrounding archaeological landscape consists of the ruins of a palace, a fortress, a pottery kiln and a cemetery.
The Jam minaret is probably located on the site of the capital of the Ghurids, the city of Firuzkuh. Scientists believe the minaret was attached to the Friday mosque, which was destroyed during severe flooding even before the Mongol siege in the early 13th century.
The structure is little known outside the country and has not received much attention from foreign tourists. Nonetheless, President Ashraf Ghani has shown an interest in preserving the cultural life of Afghanistan and is collaborating with the UNESCO Kabul Office. The UNESCO team in 2002 and 2003 prevented the complete destruction of the cultural monument by building a new load-bearing wall, but the office in Kabul still does not have a clear plan for its preservation.
As of 2013, the minaret is on the list of world cultural heritage monuments, over which there is a serious threat of destruction due to erosion, but active conservation work is not being carried out.
