The city of Kashan in Iran was struck by a major earthquake just before dawn on 15 December 1778.

The convergence between the two plates is accommodated across a broad zone from the Zagros fold and thrust belt in the southwest to the Alborz mountain range in the north.

The Bazaar and the Jameh Mosque of Kashan were badly damaged, although the brick-built minaret of the latter survived.

[1] Reconstruction of Kashan began soon after the earthquake, under the orders of Karim Khan Zand, preventing a mass exodus of the survivors.

Under the leadership of 'Abd al-Razzaq Khan, the fourth governor of Kashan, a new bazaar was built directly on the basement of the old building[5] and the Jameh Mosque of Kashan was extensively rebuilt, as were many other public buildings.