The prop­er­ty includes nine gar­dens in as many provinces. They exem­pli­fy the diver­si­ty of Per­sian gar­den designs that evolved and adapt­ed to dif­fer­ent cli­mate con­di­tions while retain­ing prin­ci­ples that have their roots in the times of Cyrus the Great, 6th cen­tu­ry BC. Always divid­ed into four sec­tors, with water play­ing an impor­tant role for both irri­ga­tion and orna­men­ta­tion, the Per­sian gar­den was con­ceived to sym­bol­ize Eden and the four Zoroas­tri­an ele­ments of sky, earth, water and plants. These gar­dens, dat­ing back to dif­fer­ent peri­ods since the 6th cen­tu­ry BC, also fea­ture build­ings, pavil­ions and walls, as well as sophis­ti­cat­ed irri­ga­tion sys­tems. They have influ­enced the art of gar­den design as far as India and Spain.