UROMIYEH

Province of Western Azarbaijan. Altitude 1,340 meters, 25 km off the west shore of Lake Uromiyeh(landing stage at Golmankhaneh). By road 300 km from Tabriz, 280 km south of Bazargan (Turkish frontier, international post), 570 km north of kermanshah.

"The most beautiful blue in the world" is how people used to describe that water, which contains a concentration of salt almost as heavy as that of the Dead Sea. The ancient Persians called it the "Royal Sea".

"Church of Saint Thaddeus"

Apparently in olden times, when the water of the upper reaches of the lake were a good deal sweeter, the region had been even more fertile. There are traces of ancient civilizations all over the place. Nomad tribes frequented that "Riviera" as early as eight thousands years B.C. legend has it that Zoroaster was born there and we are assured that the Three Wise Men from the East crossed the region on their way to Bethlehem. At Hasanlu, near Heydarabad (80 km South of Uromiyeh), around the south-western corner of the lake, the remnants of tombs have yielded glazed pottery as well as gold and silver objects. Modern Uromiyeh is characterized by the joint activities and coexistence of Iranians of diverse racial groups and religions.

"Kandavan, Eastern Azarbaijan Province, A perspective of Village"

People of Armenian, Kurdish, Turkish and Persian origin live side by side as did once the Urartes, the Medes and the Assyrians. A Church with a tall, square belfry, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, has for its neighbor for the Shiite Friday Mosque, its exquisitely sculptured mehrab is a splendid specimen of Seljuk art (12th and 13th centuries).

"Maku City"

"City Bazaar, West Azarbaijan Province"