Khalid Nabi Cemetery
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Khalid Nabi Cemetery (Nabi means "prophet" or "Khaled the messenger") is a cemetery in northeastern Iran near the border with Turkmenistan, roughly 40 miles northeast of Gonbad-e Kavous, near the hills of Turkmen Sahra. It is a notable example of phallic architecture and a major tourist attraction.
The cemetery first came into prominence after archaeologist David Stronach wrote an article, in 1981 noting the paucity of available research. However it was only until nine years later that it received more publicity and people started visiting the place in spite of fear of moral policing by Iran's clergy. The cemetery is now a national heritage site protected by the Iranian government, believed to house the tomb of the Yemeni prophet, Khalid ebn Sinan, a Christian prophet who was born 40 years prior to the birth of Muhammad, in c. 530 (according to historian Alireza Hesar Nuee). The ancient graveyard contains some 600 tombstones of unknown origin, many of which are clear representations of the phallus; from a distance they resemble stone pegs.
In the graveyard of the 600 odd standing stones (symbolic of tombstones of male and female genitals) some are cylindrical in shape, height varying from 1 to 5m and the others are of rectangular shape with two upper lobes; some are believed to represent female breasts. There are no engravings marking the dates of these phallic tomb stones but historians believe it to be of (Turkoman) tribal heritage who speak a dialect of Persian reside in northeast Iran and lead a nomadic life and training horses.). They live a mostly nomadic life, making a living from training horses. as recent as the 17th or 18th century. However, the mausoleum or tomb on the Gokjeh Mountain is believed to be that of Khaled Nabi. The cemetery according to legend contains stones of people who were cursed by god for their sins and belonged to people who believed in fetishism centuries ago. The tomb is a religious pilgrimage place where women pray seeking boons for their welfare, by way of tying ribbons in close by trees. The isolated cemetery has become popular tourist attraction in Iran and a source of amusement amongst visitors.
