Gavmishan Bridge

Gavmishan Bridge is a historic bridge in Darreh Shahr County, Ilam Province, Iran. The bridge was built in the late Sasanian era on Karkheh River, parts of which constitute the modern-day border of Ilam and Lorestan provinces.[1][2] It is 175 m (574 ft) in length and about 8 m (26 ft) in width. It has the longest arch span among the ancient bridges in Iran and the world. It is known by many experts as an engineering feat considering the time it was built, the material used and the floods it has withstood during its age of 1400 years.[3][4]

Gavmishan Bridge پل گاومیشان
The bridge in modern day.
Coordinates	33°05′02″N 47°32′15″E
Crosses	Seymareh River
Locale	Border of Ilam and Lorestan Provinces
Maintained by	ICHTO
Heritage status	Iran National Heritage List
Registry Number	2222
Characteristics
Design	Arch
Material	Mortar, Brick and Rock
Total length	175 m (574 ft)
Width	8.2 m (27 ft)
Traversable?	No
Longest span	33.7 m (111 ft)
No. of spans	6
Piers in water	2
Design life	Around 1400 years
History
Construction end	Late Sasanian Era
Collapsed	During Muslim Conquest of Persia
Location

It is believed that the bridge was intentionally destroyed by the Persian army to stop or slow down the invasion of Arabs during the Muslim Conquest of Persia in the 7th century.[5]