Investigating the Importance of the Ancient Way Fahraj-Nosrat Abad (Aspi) in the Late Sasanid Period until the End of the Seljuk Era Path Based on the Newly-Found Karvansaray (Robat) of the Gorg Desert (Southern Margin of Lut)

Historical geography sources of the early and middle Islamic centuries have named two cities of, Fahraj and Aspi or Senij (current Nosrat Abad), which fall under prosperous cities on the outskirts of the desert and the route from Kerman to Sistan. Archeological studies of the Cultural Landscape Region of Bam explored the ancient Fahraj-to-Aspi route in the first half of the 2010s. Later studies identified the Biyaban-e-Gorg building. The themes raised in this research concern understanding the significance of the Fahraj-to-Aspi axis in the late Sasanid era until the end of the Seljuk era and the study of the function of the Biyaban-e-Gorg building and its date of construction. The present study uses the descriptive-analytical approach and gathers data via field surveys and library sources. The research goals are as follows: first, part of the ancient main route of Fars and Kerman to Sistan in the cultural landscape region of Bam is introduced, which is aimed at answering numerous historical ambiguities in the eastern civilization, and few measures taken to understanding the ancient axes of this area are also discussed; second, the use and period of construction of the Biyaban-e-Gorg building as an impressive building in the middle of the Fahraj-to-Aspi route, located in southeastern Iran, is investigated. The studied axis starts from Fahraj in the southern outskirts of the Lut Plain (Zangi Ahmad Lut) and leads to Aspi (Nosrat Abad) on the road measuring 150 km involving 4-5 settlements. The works identified on the axis include two large settlements, parts of the ancient cobblestone roads, ten castles and caravanserais, and two minarets. These works date back to the late Sasanid era until the end of the Seljuk reign. This important axis was used from the beginning of Islam until the end of the Seljuk dynasty. It was also part of the ancient Kerman-to-Sistan main route that broadly constituted part of the ancient Fars-to-Sistsan (Zerang) axis. The Biyaban-e-Gorg building was an excellent site in the middle of this route. This building has an octagonal sketch with eight towers in the corners and forty chambers around the atrium, and a caravanserai in the middle of the route. An explanation of the use and date of construction of this site not only helps understand the importance of the route under study but also complements a set of architectural evidence of caravanserais as well as castles in the Seljuk era, finally compensating for the lack of data and cultural-historical documents from this era.