The village of Masouleh is located in Gilan Province, in Iran, perched high on a densely forested mountainside about 60 kilometers inland from the Caspian Sea. Forever covered in fog, which barely leaves the village, Masouleh is an incredible spectacle: a series of cottages built on a slope, such that each house's courtyard is another house's rooftop.

Masouleh is located about 1,050 meters above sea level, but the range of elevation varies by over a hundred meters in the village. Because of this the houses are constructed in stepped terraces and are interconnected. The terrace of each house functions as the courtyard of the house above. In some cases, public streets are laid out along interconnected roofs. Due to its unique layout Masouleh does not permit any motor vehicles to enter as the small streets and many stairs make it impossible for vehicles to operate in the village. Masouleh’s peculiar architecture, can be compared, to some extent to the Libyan village of Ghadames, where interconnected rooftops create a network of passageways.

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