TEHERAN, or TEHRAN, te-h'-ran'. The capital of Persia and of the Province of Teheran, 70 miles due south of the Caspian Sea, in lati tude 35° 41' N., longitude 51° 25' E.. on a sandy and stony plateau 90 by 40 miles in extent (Map: Persia, D 3). Its elevation is 3800 feet. In 1869 the Shah caused the mud walls of the city to be torn down and five years later it was surround ed by a ditch and 58 bastions, after the method of Vauban. It is now in the form of an irregular octagon, inclosing 71/2 square miles, and having twelve gates. Several broad, handsome boule vards have been laid out, and are lighted by gas, and a beginning has been made in the Western style of architecture. The sanitary conditions have likewise become improved. The bazaars are the centre of life. There are seven miles of tramways, and a railroad to Shah-Abdul-Azim, six miles south of the capita]. The 'Ark' or forti fied palace of the Shah, in the northern quarter of Teheran. contains prisons, a military school, beautiful gardens, baths, kiosks, and several other handsome buildings, including the harem. The wealthy citizens dwell in elaborate and costly establishments with lovely gardens, tiny ponds, and ventilating towers. The town has a library, founded in 1850, a normal school, a mili tary college, and Kings' College, a polytechnic school, dating from 1849, with European profes sors, where Arabic, English, French, and Russian, mathematics, telegraphy, engineering, military tactics, music, and painting are taught. To some of the many mosques are attached `Madrasahs' (colleges). The mosque called Masjid-i-Shah (mosque of the King) with a beautiful enameled facade, and the Masjid-i-Madar-i-Shah (mosque of the King's mother) deserve mention.
There are many baths, Mohammedan and Arme nian, the Europeans using the latter. During the summer, on account of the unhealthfulness of the town and the intolerable heat, the embassies, as well as the wealthier inhabitants, move to the slopes of the neighboring mountains.
Water is furnished by numerous underground watercourses leading from the mountains. The supply, however, is not regulated, because of the private ownership of many of these canals. The town accordingly suffers from a lack of water in summer and has a superfluity in winter. Irrigation is thus provided for, however, and the surrounding country has been made highly pro ductive. Teheran manufactures cotton, linen, carpets, shoes, hats, and ironwork, but is not a leading centre of manufacturing. it has, how ever, an important general caravan trade. An excellent highway 217 miles long, constructed by Russian capital, and completed in 1899, extends from Resht on the Caspian to Teheran. To the south lie the ruins of Rei, the birthplace of Harun-al-Rashid, known in the time of Alex ander the Great as Rape, the Rhages of Scrip ture, the capital of Partbia. The population varies from 160,000 in summer to 250,000 in winter. This includes 500 Europeans, 4000 Armenians, and 4000 Jews. There is a Catholic mission school. Teheran, according to Monier, is the Taho•s of the Theodosian Tablets.