Kandovan is a village in Sahand Rural District, in the Central District of Osku
County, East Azerbaijan Province, Iran. This village is a wonderful example of
manmade cliff dwelling which is still inhabited. The troglodyte homes, excavated
inside volcanic rocks and tuffs similar to dwellings in the Turkish region
of Cappadocia, are locally called “Karaan”. Karaans were cut into the Lahars
(volcanic mudflow or debris flow) of Mount Sahand. The cone form of the houses
is the result of lahar flow consisting of porous round and angular pumice
together with other volcanic particles that were positioned in a grey acidic
matrix. After the eruption of Sahand these materials were naturally moved and
formed the rocks of Kandovan. Around the village the thickness of this formation
exceeds 100 m and with time due to water erosion the cone shaped
cliffs were formed. At the 2006 census, the village population was 601, in 168
families.
