The Karaftu caves (,) are an ensemble of artificially cut rock chambers located between

Saqqez Saqqez (; ; ) is a city in the Central District (Saqqez County), Central District of Saqqez County, Kurdistan province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. Etymology The name Saqqez derives from the Scythian la ...

and

Divandarreh Divandarreh () is a city in the Central District of Divandarreh County, Kurdistan province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. Demographics Ethnicity The city is populated by Kurds Kurds (), or the Kurdi ...

, Kurdistan province,

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. The cave complex dates back to the 3rd or 4th century BC and is of major importance due to its

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

inscription; "one of the very few examples preserved

in situ is a Latin phrase meaning 'in place' or 'on site', derived from ' ('in') and ' ( ablative of ''situs'', ). The term typically refers to the examination or occurrence of a process within its original context, without relocation. The term is use ...

" in Iran. Alongside the Bisotun Herakles, it represents one of the only extant Seleucid rock-cut artworks. The rock-cut cave complex dates to the

Seleucid The Seleucid Empire ( ) was a Greek state in West Asia during the Hellenistic period. It was founded in 312 BC by the Macedonian general Seleucus I Nicator, following the division of the Macedonian Empire founded by Alexander the Great, a ...

era, and likely served as a Seleucid garrison.

UNESCO

This cave was registered as one of Iran's national monuments on February 10, 1940, with registration number 330. Also, this cave was registered in UNESCO's temporary world list on November 15, 2022.Natural-Historical Complex / Cave of Karaftoo
UNESCO

Gallery

Karaftu Cave 2019-07-09 01.jpg, Karaftu Cave 2019-07-09 12.jpg, Karaftu Cave 2019-07-09 05.jpg, Karaftu Cave 2019-07-09 03.jpg, Karaftu Cave 2019-07-09 10.jpg, Karaftu Cave 2019-07-09 07.jpg, Karaftu Cave 2019-07-09 14.jpg, Karaftu Cave 2019-07-09 15.jpg, Karaftu Cave 2019-07-09 08.jpg, Karaftu Cave 2019-07-09 16.jpg, کرفتو.jpg,

Notes

References

Populated places in Kurdistan province Landforms of Kurdistan province Caves of Iran Greek inscriptions Seleucid Empire Buildings and structures on the Iran National Heritage List {{AncientGreekWorld-stub