Iran
Locally known for being a former home of Turkmenistan's 'national poet' Makhtumkuli, the visually forgettable village of Haji Qoshan is one of the points where the vague undulation that was once Sadd-e Eskander crosses a paved road. Opposite the telephone relay station, atop a hump of 'wall' remnants, are several butterfly-shaped gravestones of the type you'll see at Khalid Nibi Shrine.
The original cemetery from where these were moved here is hidden away in roadless badlands further north.
15.66 MILES
A Unesco World Heritage site since 2012, this 53m tower in Gonbad's centre looks like a buttressed-brick spaceship with the cross-section of a 10-pointed…
22.07 MILES
Dramatically perched above a sea of badlands sit three small mausoleums. The most important commemorates a certain Khalid Nibi; although he was apparently…
7.77 MILES
This ancient wall once stretched 190km from the Golestan Mountains to the Caspian Sea; like its equivalents in China and England, Alexander’s Wall was…
15.69 MILES
This well-presented but very small museum exhibits seventeen 20th-century Turkmen carpets, labelled with dates of production and styles. There are also a…
3.68 MILES
Around a dozen square-plan fort sites lie along the course of what was once the so-called Alexander's Wall. All are just muddy shapes rising above the…
18.25 MILES
This large, ornate imamzadeh lies 4km southwest of central Gonbad-e Kavus. To the complex's direct west is a ragged area of wasteland that, viewed from…
2.35 MILES
Of the dozen or so amorphous remains of the former forts that was once used to guard the Sadd-e Eskander wall, this is one of the best preserved. It's 4km…
2.35 MILES
Of the dozen or so amorphous remains of the former forts that was once used to guard the Sadd-e Eskander wall, this is one of the best preserved. It's 4km…
3.68 MILES
Around a dozen square-plan fort sites lie along the course of what was once the so-called Alexander's Wall. All are just muddy shapes rising above the…
7.77 MILES
This ancient wall once stretched 190km from the Golestan Mountains to the Caspian Sea; like its equivalents in China and England, Alexander’s Wall was…
15.66 MILES
A Unesco World Heritage site since 2012, this 53m tower in Gonbad's centre looks like a buttressed-brick spaceship with the cross-section of a 10-pointed…
15.69 MILES
This well-presented but very small museum exhibits seventeen 20th-century Turkmen carpets, labelled with dates of production and styles. There are also a…
18.25 MILES
This large, ornate imamzadeh lies 4km southwest of central Gonbad-e Kavus. To the complex's direct west is a ragged area of wasteland that, viewed from…
22.07 MILES
Dramatically perched above a sea of badlands sit three small mausoleums. The most important commemorates a certain Khalid Nibi; although he was apparently…