CASHAN, or Kashan, a city of Persia, in the province of Irak, 92 miles north of Ispahan, in a dry and stony plain, in 33° 52' N. lat. and 51° 20' E. long. The city is said to have been founded by Zobeide, wife of Haroun el Raschid. The manufactures are silk-brocades, carpets, cottons, gold and silver articles, and copper kettles. The city has a palace, many fine mosques, bazaars, and caravanseries. At the foot of the neighbouring hills, four miles away, are the villa and beautiful gardens of Feen, the scene of the official murder, 9th January 1852, of Amiru-’n-Nizam, one of the ablest ministers that Persia has had in modern times. The chief pavilion of the villa is in the form of a kiosk, with a projecting portico in front. The interior is decorated with fine arabesques. The vicinity of Cashan is famous for its scorpions. The city suffered from an earthquake in 1853. Population, 25,000.