Dārāb

Darab lies in the southeastern part of Fars, near the ancient circular city of Darabgird. The old city was enclosed by a great round rampart and moat, with routes entering through its gates. Its origins reach back before the Sasanian dynasty, whose founder Ardashir served as governor of the district. Nearby rock reliefs and other ancient remains testify to its importance in early Sasanian Iran.

Medieval writers knew the district for mumia, a rare bituminous substance collected from rock and valued as medicine. The old city eventually declined, and the later settlement developed nearby. Darab's Friday mosque has an unusual plan: rather than the customary courtyard and iwans, it has a rectangular prayer hall surrounded by open porches and four corner towers. Possibly built in the seventeenth century, it reflects a local architectural tradition within the wider world of Persian mosque building.