Sherwana Castle, Castle in Kalar, Iraq

Sherwana Castle is a 19th-century fortress on the Shirwan River in Kalar, built in 1866 by Mohamed Pasha Jaff. Its stone walls and central cupola were damaged by an earthquake in 2017, which partially collapsed the cupola; restoration followed in 2018.

Mohamed Pasha Jaff built the fortress in 1866 after receiving Ottoman approval to settle in the Shahrizor region. The construction marked the family's establishment as a local power in this strategic location.

The castle is the ancestral home of the Jaff family, built by Mohamed Pasha Jaff, a Kurdish pasha serving the Ottoman Empire. In 2012, an ancient clay jar was found inside the building, and Saddam Hussein later ordered its restoration.

The grounds are accessible year-round, and restoration work completed in 2018 has stabilized the structure. Visitors should wear comfortable shoes and be prepared for uneven terrain.

A clay jar found inside the castle on 1 February 2012 was reported as an archaeological artefact. The structure also carries damage from later decades: military activity in the 1990s, heavy rain in 2014 that cracked the walls, and a 2017 earthquake that harmed about 35% of it, including a partly collapsed cupola, before restoration in 2018.