Siraf
| سیراف | |
Panorama of Siraf
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 Location of the site
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| Location | Bushehr Province, Iran |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 27°40′00″N 52°20′33″E / 27.66667°N 52.34250°ECoordinates: 27°40′00″N 52°20′33″E / 27.66667°N 52.34250°E |
| Type | Settlement |
| Site notes | |
| Condition | In ruins |
Siraf (Persian: سیراف; also Romanized as Sīraf or Bandar-e Sīraf, "Bandar" meaning "Port" in Persian) is an ancient city in the Central District of Kangan County, Bushehr Province, Iran.
Siraf was according to a legend an ancient Sassanid port, destroyed around 970 CE, which was located on the north shore of the Persian Gulf in what is now the Iranian province of Bushehr. Its ruins are approximately 220 km east of Bushire and 380 km west of Bandar Abbas,30 km east from Kangan city. Siraf controlled three ports: Bandar-e-Taheri, Bandar-e-Kangan and Bandar-e-Dayer. The Persian Gulf was used as a shipping route between the Arabian Peninsula and India over the Arabian Sea. Small boats, such as dhows, could also make the long journey by staying close to the coast and keeping land in sight.
According to David Whitehouse, one of the first archaeologists to excavate the ancient ruins of Siraf, marine trade between the Persian Gulf and Far East lands began to flourish at this port because of the vast expansion of trade in consumer goods and luxury items at the time. The first contact between Siraf and China occurred in 185 CE. However, over time trade routes shifted to the Red Sea and Siraf was forgotten. Siraf as a port was founded in the 9th century, and continued its trade activity till the 15th century, then fell into rapid decline.
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