Chehel Sotun The paintings of the western wall (opposite the entrance) depict, from right to left. the following subjects: The feast given by Shah Abbas the Great in honor of King Vali Mohammad Khan of Turkestan. This is a clear and picturesque portrayal of the ostentation of the Esfahan court. The battle of Chaldoran between the troops of Shah Ismail r Safavid and the Ot-toman Janissaries. The reception given by Shah [...]
Chehel Sotun Chehel Sotun, Hasht Behesht, and Talar-e Ashraf, along with several other, less sumptuous buildings are the few survivors of the magnificent compound of Safavid palaces which used to occupy a vast area from Naqsh-e Jahan Square to Chahar Bagh Avenue. These palaces stand amid . superb parkland, which, however, has been largely diminished compared to the original garden of Jahan Nama that had been planted there by Shah Ismail Safavid. Today the original plan of the park and [...]
Ali Qapu The royal staircase, added during the rule of Shah Abbas II, is 1.4 m wide and has 118 steps; this staircase was used during the monarch’s public receptions. The first two floors of the present structure totally lack the ornamentation because little has survived the vandalism of visitors to the palace immediately after the Islamic Revolution. Only a pattern of the fine curtains – the conspicuous feature of all Safavid palaces – is discernible on the dados. However, [...]
Ali Qapu The royal palace of Ali Qapu dominates the western side of Naqsh-e Iahan Square. The palace was founded in 1597, duing the 11th year of Shah Abbas’s reign, to serve as his place of residence. The palace was eventually created on the site of a garden pavilion that most historians attribute to the Timurid period. At Shah Abbas’s order, the Timurid structure was rebuilt and expanded. At this stage, the palace consisted of four floors and a hypostyle [...]
Isfahan Naghsh-e Jahan Square Naqsh-e Jahan ("Pattern of the World") Square is the most spectacular, most magnificent sight of Isfahan. No matter how many descriptions of it one may have previously heard or read, the first sight of it is sure to provoke a gasp of astonishment. Today this magnificent plaza has been renamed, and is now called Imam Square. A huge arena of more than 80,000 sq. m - 510 m long and 163 m wide - it is [...]
Gardens Most historical gardens in Iran have a mythological background. In fact, the English word “paradise” derives from Old Persian Pardis (“a royal garden").The traditional Iranian garden is usually divided into four quarters by the intersection of two principal avenues. Noteworthy examples of this type are Hasht Behesht, Chehel Sotun in Esfahan, planted during the Safavid period, and Fin Garden in Kashan.The finest of the Safavid gardens was Hezar jarib, situated at the end of Chahar Bagh Avenue on the [...]
Pottery Safavid ceramics can hardly stand comparison with the splendid wares of earlier periods, yet under the Safavids, there was a notable renaissance in pottery. The artists of the Safavid age brought about the beautiful tilework that can be observed in the mosques of this period. Shah Abbas the Great is said to have summoned to his capital 300 Chinese potters, and the most characteristic ceramics of his reign show the strong influence, and often the direct imitation, of Far Eastern [...]
Carpets While architecture and painting were the main artistic vehicles of the Safavids, the making of textiles and carpets was also of great importance. In the 16th century, hitherto primarily nomadic crafts were transformed into royal industries by the creation of court workshops. The best known carpets of this period, dated 1539. come from the Mausoleum of Sheikh Safi od-Din Safavid in Ardabil and, in the opinion of many experts, represent the summit of achievement in carpet design. The larger [...]
Calligraphy While in the West calligraphy is considered mainly penmanship, in the East it is one of the most important fine Arts. Calligraphers were an essential requirement for any self-respecting court, and very often princes and nobles practiced calligraphy themselves. Moreover, prohibition against figurative art in mosques, and an emphasis put on literacy and knowledge Islamic leaders imparted further importance to the written word in the Islamic world.Broadly speaking, there were two distinct scripts in the early centuries of Islam: [...]
Miniature Miniature in Iran went through a long and complicated course of development, reaching its culmination mainly during the Mongol and Timurid periods. From a historical viewpoint, the most important development in Iranian miniature has been the adoption of Chinese design and coloring, subsequently blended with the idiosyncratic cultural concepts of Iranian artists. The most important function of miniatures was the illustration of manuscripts. Miniatures pictured the literary plot, making it more enjoyable and easier to understand. Iran's great wealth of [...]
