A New Look to the Mir GholamHashemi Castle, the Components of the Building (Castle or Caravansary)

Mir GholamHashemi castle in Ilam is located in Farhad Abad village near the DarrehShahr city. According to the inscription on the entrance of the building of the castle, it is dates back to Qajar period. This inscription is the only evidence that names the building a ‘castle’. Unlike the implication of the word, there is no sign of military considerations, like other castles of this period. Architectural indicators of Iranian military castles such aswatch towers, loopholes, large iron gates, moats, magazine, prisons and the like are not found there. This research studies Mir Gholam Hashemi castle architecture work that is located in Farhad Abad village. This study used field research and literature review to analyze the main function of this building compared to other similar buildings in Qajar period. The purpose of this study is to analyze the available data to specify the use of this construction, whether it is a castle or a caravansary. The research question is that, what are the architectural elements that are used in the construction of this building; and the research hypothesis is that the architectural elements used in this building represents a Qajar caravansary. The results show that, this castle can be considered as a kind of private caravansary which in addition to its original purpose had some defensive and protective functions. This building was also supervising execution of country laws and by managing social relations between adjacent villages, in addition to guiding caravans, raised financial profits for the local Khan.