“The vacant high school is located near the Abyaneh Research Institute and the village’s anthropology museum. We intend to convert the building into an international research center,” Azimeh Riahi added.
The research center will help to further familiarize the world with the historic village and will attract many tourists to the hamlet, she observed.
Located 70 kilometers southeast of Kashan, in Isfahan Province, Abyaneh is home to living traditions of unique architectural styles, and is one of the most interesting examples of human adaptation to nature.
The village is compact, with narrow and sloped lanes, and the houses are situated on terraces on a mountainside. The roofs of some houses are the courtyards of other houses higher up on the slope.
Many of the buildings are inspired by Islamic and Zoroastrian architectural designs.
The Abyaneh Anthropology Museum opened in early July.
“The establishment of the center will draw scholars to the village, and very likely, will help promote research in this village,” Riahi said.
A team of experts from the Abyaneh Research Institute, which was established in 2003, is currently reinforcing the village’s houses against earthquakes.
MMS/ML/HG
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MNA