Mount Damavand, the highest peak of Iran, which is located near Tehran, is an important location in Ferdowsi's ''Šāhnāme'', an Iranian epic poem based on the ancient legends of Iran. It appears in the epics as the homeland of the protoplast Keyumars, the birthplace of King Manuchehr, the place where King Fereydun bound the dragon fiend Aždahāk (Bivarasp), and the place where Arash shot his arrow.