Kharraqan twin tomb-towers located in Hesar Valiasr village, Avaj city, Qazvin Province, date back to Seljuk era.
Perhaps they are the oldest octagonal two-layer domes with four squinches.
One was built in 1069 AD and the other in 1077 AD by two different architects, 29 meters apart. The tombs are 15 meters high and 11 meters thick, reported CHN.
Unpainted brick structures and raised platforms reached its zenith during Seljuk era.
With about 50 masterpiece brick designs, the towers are the most significant pieces of architecture of its time. The domes and the sides are decorated and the portal entrance specifically is embellished. They have round windows and bright spiral stairs.
A Kufic inscription is overhead the older entrance in two lines; “The dome was built in 1069 AD by Mohammad All Zanjani son of Makki”. A light house and some paintings also decorate the older grill.
The towers were damaged in the 2000 earthquake. One layer of the dome is gradually disappearing.
The domes were registered on UNESCO World Heritage list in 2012.
