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Kahrizak Sugar Factory, the first sugar factory in Iran and the Middle East, is located in the city of Kahrizak in Rey county. This building includes the country’s oldest bascule, and is therefore considered one of the oldest industrial buildings in Iran. The factory was registered as a national monument in 2001, and eighteen years later, it was removed from the list in 2019 by order of Iran’s court of administrative justice. The property is currently under private ownership.
History of the Building
During the time of Naser ad-Din Shah Qajar, Mirza Ali Khan Amin-ol-Dowleh, also known as Amin-ol-Molk, received the rights for sugar production in Iran. Since the site of the current complex was surrounded by good agricultural lands with access to water, it was chosen as the place to construct the factory with the collaboration of the Belgian Corporation. Belgian engineers began construction in 1895, and the project was completed a year later when its British machinery was installed. Five years later the factory closed down due to bankruptcy.
Around 1926 a number of Zoroastrians purchased the decrepit building from Amin-ol-Dowleh’s heirs, and attempted to restart the factory. In 1929 some necessary equipment was purchased from the German Wolf Company, and the factory began operating again in 1931. In 1933 the government passed a bill in parliament by which it came to purchase all of the factory’s stock and took control of its operation. Ultimately, the factory stopped production in 1964, due to the degradation of its equipment.
Architecture
The area of the factory complex is recorded as 72,000 m2, of which 1,380 m2 is allocated to industrial buildings and storage spaces, and the rest to residential quarters.
E’temad-ol-Saltaneh wrote in his diary that the complex included eight large silos, administrative buildings, caretaker’s residence, and a bascule. All the buildings are made of brick, the silos have wood truss roofs covered with sheet metal, and except for one building in the south-western area of the complex, which has a ribbed-vault roof, the rest of the buildings have flat wood and lath roofs. The buildings lack ornamentation apart a few brick adornments on some of the copings. Different parts of the complex were built over three different architectural periods: the Qajar period, the first Pahlavi period, and the second Pahlavi period.
Kahrizak
Kahrizak, which was called Chaman-Zamin (grasslands) in the past, is located 12 kilometers to the south of Shahr-e-Rey, alongside the old Tehran-Qom road in Tehran province. Given its ancient mounds, its fertile land, and numerous references to Rey and the surrounding areas in historic documents, it is believed to be one of the oldest human settlements in Iran.
The effects of the factory on Kahrizak
The establishment of the sugar factory in Kahrizak led to significant changes in the area. Among these was a change in the villagers’ agricultural products, with sugar beet gaining precedence over wheat and barley. Additionally, when the surrounding residences were taken over by factory workers, village life was gradually replaced by industry, turning the village atmosphere into a semi-industrial complex. Currently, Kahrizak is considered a suburb of Tehran. It is located south of Behesht-e Zahra cemetery and the main Tehran-Qom transit passes through it. The present population of the area is 40,000 people, and it includes 800 industrial units and 4,000 workshops and storage spaces.
کارخانه‌ی قند کهریزک نخستین کارخانه‌ی قند ایران و خاورمیانه واقع در شهرستان ری، شهر کهریزک است. این بنا قدیمی‌ترین باسکول را در خود جای داده و از این‌رو، از کهن‌ترین آثار معماری صنعتی ایران به شمار می‌رود. در سال ۱۳۸۰ شمسی، این بنا در آثار ملی ایران به ثبت رسید و هجده سال بعد، در سال ۱۳۹۸ شمسی، به‌حکم دیوان عدالت اداری از فهرست آثار ملی خارج شد. این ملک هم‌اکنون مالکانی خصوصی دارد.
تاریخچه‌ی بنا
در دوران ناصرالدین‌شاه قاجار، میرزا علی‌خان امین‌الدوله ملقب به امین‌الملک، از رجال سیاسی آن زمان، امتیاز تولید قند را در ایران گرفت و از‌آنجا‌که مکان امروزی کارخانه زمین‌های آبرفتی و مساعد کشاورزی داشت، با مشارکت شرکت سهامی بلژیکی محل کنونی را برای احداث آن برگزید. ساخت کارخانه در خرداد ۱۲۷۴ خورشیدی به‌دست مهندسان بلژیکی آغاز شد؛ حدود یک سال بعد، با نصب ماشین‌آلات ساخت انگلستان پایان یافت، و پنج سال بعد، به‌دلیل ورشکستگی تعطیل شد.
حدود سال ۱۳۰۵ خورشیدی، عده‌ای از زرتشتیان کارخانه را به‌صورت آهن‌پاره از وارثان امین‌الدوله خریداری کرده و برای راه‌اندازی دوباره‌ی آن کوشیدند. در سال ۱۳۰۸، سایر ماشین‌آلات ضروری از کمپانی آلمانی وولف خریداری و نصب شد و اولین بهره‌برداری دوباره‌ی آن در سال ۱۳۱۰ صورت گرفت. در سال ۱۳۱۲، دولت با گذراندن مصوبه‌ای در مجلس تمامی سهام کارخانه را خریداری کرد و اداره‌ی آن را به دست گرفت. پس از ۳۱ سال، سرانجام فعالیت کارخانه در سال ۱۳۴۳ شمسی به‌علت فرسودگی ماشین‌آلات متوقف شد.
معماری بنا
مساحت کل زمین کارخانه در اسناد ۷۲ هزار متر مربع ذکر شده که ۱۳۸۰ متر مربع آن زیربناهای صنعتی و انبارها، و باقی آن منازل مسکونی بوده است.
به گفته‌ی اعتمادالسلطنه در کتاب خاطراتِ خود، این بنا دارای هشت سوله‌ی بزرگ و ساختمان‌های اداری، سرایداری و باسکول بوده و مصالح به‌کار‌رفته در آن همه آجری است. سقف سوله‌ها با خرپاهای چوبی و فلزی پوشش داده شده و به‌جز بنایی که در جنوب غربی عمارت و روش طاق و تویزه اجرا شده است، سایر بناها سقف مسطح چوبی و توفال خوبی دارند. به‌جز اندکی تزیینات آجری در رُخ‌بام بعضی از ساختمان‌ها، این بنا فاقد تزیینات خاص است. بخش‌های مختلف این بنا در سه دوره‌ی مختلف تاریخی ساخته شده است: دوره‌ی قاجار، پهلوی اول و دوم.
منطقه‌ی کهریزک
کهریزک، با نام قدیم چمن‌زمین، در 12 کیلومتری جنوب شهر ری، در استان تهران و کنار جاده‌ی قدیم تهران‌ــ‌قم قرار گرفته است. با توجه به وجود تپه‌هاي باستاني، حاصلخیزی زمین‌های این منطقه و اشارات زيادی که در نوشته‌هاي تاريخي به ري و اطراف آن شده این منطقه را يكي از قديمي‌ترين نقاط سكونت انسان در ايران دانسته‌اند.
تأثیر حضور کارخانه در منطقه‌ی کهریزک
تأسیس کارخانه‌ی قند در کهریزک دگرگونی عمده‌ای در این منطقه پدید آورد. از جمله‌ی این تغییرات، تغییر نوع کشت روستاییان و پیشی‌گرفتن کشت چغندر بر گندم و جو بود. همچنین، به‌دلیل تبدیل خانه‌های اطراف به محلی برای سکونت کارگران کارخانه، حیات روستایی رفته‌رفته به حیات صنعتی تغییر شکل داد و بدین ترتیب، فضای روستایی به شهرکی نیمه‌صنعتی تبدیل شد. کهریزک هم‌اکنون از حومه‌های شهر تهران واقع در جنوب بهشت زهراست که شاهراه ترانزيتی تهران‌ــ‌قم از مرکز آن می‌گذرد. در حال حاضر، این منطقه چهل هزار نفر را در خود جای داده و دارای ۸۰۰ واحد صنعتی و ۴۰۰۰ هزار کارگاه و انبار است.
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Overview and HistoryTehran is the capital of Iran and the largest city in the Middle East, with a population of fifteen million people living under the peaks of the Alborz mountain range.Although archaeological evidence places human activity around Tehran back into the years 6000BC, the city was not mentioned in any writings until much later, in the thirteenth century. It's a relatively new city by Iranian standards.But Tehran was a well-known village in the ninth century. It grew rapidly when its neighboring city, Rhages, was destroyed by Mongolian raiders. Many people fled to Tehran.In the seventeenth century Tehran became home to the rulers of the Safavid Dynasty. This is the period when the wall around the city was first constructed. Tehran became the capital of Iran in 1795 and amazingly fast growth followed over the next two hundred years.The recent history of Tehran saw construction of apartment complexes and wide avenues in place of the old Persian gardens, to the detriment of the city's cultural history.The city at present is laid out in two general parts. Northern Tehran is more cosmopolitan and expensive, southern Tehran is cheaper and gets the name "downtown."Getting ThereMehrabad airport is the original one which is currently in the process of being replaced by Imam Khomeini International Airport. The new one is farther away from the city but it now receives all the international traffic, so allow an extra hour to get there or back.TransportationTehran driving can be a wild free-for-all like some South American cities, so get ready for shared taxis, confusing bus routes and a brand new shiny metro system to make it all better. To be fair, there is a great highway system here.The metro has four lines, tickets cost 2000IR, and they have segregated cars. The women-only carriages are the last two at the end, FYI.Taxis come in two flavors, shared and private. Private taxis are more expensive but easier to manage for the visiting traveler. Tehran has a mean rush hour starting at seven AM and lasting until 8PM in its evening version. Solution? Motorcycle taxis! They cut through the traffic and any spare nerves you might have left.People and CultureMore than sixty percent of Tehranis were born outside of the city, making it as ethnically and linguistically diverse as the country itself. Tehran is the most secular and liberal city in Iran and as such it attracts students from all over the country.Things to do, RecommendationsTake the metro to the Tehran Bazaar at the stop "Panzda Gordad". There you can find anything and everything -- shoes, clothes, food, gold, machines and more. Just for the sight of it alone you should take a trip there.If you like being outside, go to Darband and drink tea in a traditional setting. Tehranis love a good picnic and there are plenty of parks to enjoy. Try Mellat park on a friday (fridays are public holidays), or maybe Park Daneshjou, Saaii or Jamshidieh.Remember to go upstairs and have a look around, always always always! The Azadi Tower should fit the bill; it was constructed to commemorate the 2500th anniversary of the Persian Empire.Tehran is also full of museums such as:the Contemporary Art Museumthe Abghine Musuem (glass works)the 19th century Golestan Royal Palace museumthe museum of carpets (!!!)Reza Abbasi Museum of extraordinary miniaturesand most stunning of all,the Crown Jewels Museum which holds the largest pink diamond in the world and many other jaw-dropping jewels.Text by Steve Smith.
