The First World Windmills in South Khorasan & Sistan- Baluchestan Provinces
Asbads (Windmills) of Iran
Asbads (windmills) of Iran is not only the oldest windmills in Iran but also in the world. They are one of the most famous historical sites and tourism monuments of Nashtifan Located in South Khorasan-Iran. These masterpiece architectural named Nish Toofan, or "storm's sting," the windmills have withstood winds of up to 74 miles an hour.

The first people who decided to implement wind power were ancient Persians. Nearly 2800 years ago, Iranian engineers in Sistan and Baluchestan & South Khorasan Provinces built the first windmills in the path of the region's 120-day-blowing winds to use its incredible power for milling grains, and to extract water from the wells. This Iranian invention is called Asbad, which is short for the Persian equivalent to the word windmill. Iranians implemented the windmills based on the rotation along a horizontal axis, and this is why Iranian windmills look different from their Dutch counterparts. In addition to Sistan and Baluchestan Province, there are Asbads in the town of Nehabandan, which is a part of South Khorasan Province.

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From ancient times, Iranians and foreign explorers who crossed Sistan and Baluchestan could not hide their fascination with the region's pioneering technologies. Robert Forbes, the famous technological historian, has recognized Asbad as a significant Iranian invention that has been the primary source of energy for activities such as milling wheat and pumping water during the 12th century. After the Mongolians invaded Iran and saw these windmills, they captured a number of engineers who specialized in building these Asbads and took them to Eastern Asia. Also, in the 19th century, the Europeans became familiar with the Iranian technology of windmills and made some changes to its structure which led to the making of the current models in Holland.

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Furthermore, Asbads' origin i.e. Sistan and Baluchestan have a gorgeous collection of windmills that are different in structure from the ones in Khorasan Province. In this region, there are old remains of windmills that date back to the Sassanid period, but the current working models of Asbads date back to the Safavid Empire.