The dry, arid sandscapes of planet Earth can preserve structures and artifacts far more effectively than humid environments. The Minaret of Jam exemplifies this.

Rooted in Arabic tradition, the term 'minaret' describes a tower designed to beckon the faithful to prayer. Standing defiant against the elements, the Minaret of Jam pierces the skyline, rising 214 feet above the Shahrak District in the rugged and hard-to-reach Province of Ghor, Afghanistan, where the Jam and Hari rivers meet.

Built out of baked bricks and clad in glazed tiles, the Minaret of Jam features some of the most intricate and impressive engravings of its time. An octagonal platform forms the base, supporting the round tower that rises above. The Minaret also boasts two wooden balconies and once held a lantern at its peak.

Amongst the many carvings on its surface are passages from the Quran, as well as other forms of ancient Arabic and Islamic calligraphy.

Historians believe that Sultan Ghiyath al-Din of the Ghurid Dynasty, a group of Persianates who governed much of present-day Afghanistan between the 8th and 13th centuries, commissioned the construction of the Minaret around the year 1190.

The surrounding area, now a canvas of crumbling ruins, once housed an illustrious city known as the Lost City of Turquoise Mountain – one of the greatest of its era. The remnants of a monastery or palace, a Jewish graveyard, and a pottery kiln that likely baked the bricks for the Minaret of Jam hint at the city’s past glory.

Under Ghurid rule, Jews, Christians, and Muslims coexisted peacefully until the Mongols usurped power. Following the onset of Mongol rule, historical references to the Minaret of Jam dwindled. It likely became overlooked and forgotten due to its remote location.

In 2002, UNESCO deemed the Minaret a protected site. Before this, the tower was at the mercy of time and the elements, suffering centuries of erosion.

Visitors are welcome at the tower, and it is still open for them to climb, provided they are willing to risk the journey to reach it through a region fraught with conflict, theft, and murder.

However, the future of the Minaret of Jam - the sole surviving Ghurid Dynasty monument - is uncertain. A 2014 BBC report warned that the precarious structure was at immediate risk of collapse...