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Chahar Bagh (Four Gardens Avenue)
Shah Abbas I laid out this magnificent
avenue between 1596 and 1597. The Avenue runs from a district known as Hezar
Jerib (The thousand acres) in the South up to a wide square near the palace of
Chehel Sotoon, crossing the Zayandeh rood at the Si-o-Seh Pol bridge. The name
means literally "Four Gardens" and this alludes to the four great parks which
were laid out on either side of the road. The central path was originally a
watercourse and the pathways on either side of it were set as present amongst
double rows of chenar trees (platanus orientalis). The asphalted roads on either
side of the central reservation were originally flower beds.
Today the avenue is very much the centre of life in the town. The shops abutting
it are the finest, and the principal hotels in the city are situated either on
it or adjacent to it. The central reservation is screened from the ever-present
traffic although you need to watch out for motor-cyclists, and at dusk it is
full of people taking the air and talking.
This great Safavid Palace was one of nearly
300 built in Isfahan when it was the capital of Iran. It was largely completed
under Shah Abbas II (1642-1667), although work may have started on the palace as
early as 1598, and is said to derive its name from the pillars which dominate
the verandah. There are twenty of these laid out in three rows of six with two
additional ones on either side of the main entrance. When these are reflected in
the water of the pool the number is made up to forty, the Farsi for which is "chehel".
However the number forty is also used to signify a large number as in the
Minaret of Chehel Dokhtaran.
The magnificent talar or verandah, is the dominant feature of the palace and the
slender columns, over 40m tall, which support it are cut from single chenar
trees (platanus orientalis). The roof is also made from chenar tree beams and
inset with complex decoration. The surface of much of the throne room is still
covered with mirrored glass and this probably also was used on the pillars, as
it was in the palace of Ali Qapu, so as to give the appearance of a roof
floating in the air.
Looking out over the pool from the Verandah, one is able to appreciate the
importance attached historically by Persians to the concept of "talar" which
fulfilled their love of sitting in the garden while they were protected from the
light and heat.
Behind the verandah there is a small raised throne room which leads into a
spacious audience chamber. This is richly decorated with paintings celebrating
the heyday of the Safavid dynasty, including a particularly celebrated one of
Shah Tahmasb receiving the Mughul Emperor Homayun at a banquet. There are also
some paintings of a more secular nature, depicting ladies lying in gardens and
hunting scenes, although these have been badly defaced. On the outside of the
building there are some particularly interesting pictures of european figures,
presumably based on the ambassadors and their retinue who would have stayed in
the palace from time to time.
This bridge was built between 1642 and 1667
under Shah Abbas II. It takes its name from the district of Khajou on the
northern bank of the Zayandeh, which it connects with the South. It derives its
inspiration from Si-o-Seh Pol, being built in two layers, however it expands and
enhances many of the features of the older bridge. The bridge is some 110 metres
long and a little over 20m wide for most of its course.
The eastern side of the bridge has a high sill which collects the water, raisng
it by some 2m. This provides a basin from which irrigation water for the
surrounding area is drawn off in a series of channels. On the western side there
are steps over and between which the water pours and on which people collect to
do their laundry or just to talk. From the lower section of the bridge which
consists of some 20 arches, stairs lead to the spacious second storey where a
series of niches has been cut for people to collect and meet. An octagonal
pavilion is set in the centre of the bridge which now houses an art gallery.
Because the waters of the Zayandeh Rood have been slowed down at this point,
partly by the bridge of Si-o-Seh Pol and also partly by an aquaduct, the
Pol-e-Jubi, which crosses the river upstream of this bridge, it has been
possible to emphasise elegance of design rather than structural necessity.
The royal palace of 'Ali Qapu dominates the
south eastern side of the central square in Isfahan, formerly called the Meidan-e-Shah.
Its name means "The High Gate" and its impressive entranceway was no doubt
intended to symbolize the strength and authority of the Safavid monarchs who
ruled the country, and, as the posters on the verandah show, this significance
is retained even in present times when the square has been renamed Meidan-e-Imam.
The talar or verandah formed an ideal place from which to watch the games of
polo which took place in the square and is richly decorated with designs painted
on the external plaster at the rear and elaborate tracery in the ceiling. The
columns, like those of Chehel Sotoon, were originally encased in mirrored glass
to give the impression of a roof floating in the air, and like them are cut from
single chenar trees (Platanus orientalis). The lower floors are uninteresting
and were clearly used as quarters for guards, and the security of the upper
apartments was further enhanced by the uncomfortably steep and narrow stairways
which lead up and down within the building.
The interior of the building is compulsively decorated with naturalistic scenes,
charmingly painted birds and some figures, many of which have sadly been defaced
or damaged over time. These are now being repaired. The famous "Musicians Room"
contains elaborate cut-out plaster work depicting all manner and shapes of
vases, although it is doubtful whether any could ever actually have been stored
there.
The eivan and porch were probably erected shortly after 1316 to cover the
grave of Amu Abdollah Soqla, a hermit, who was buried here. The minarets are of
later, probably Safavid, origin, and are largely responsible for the fame of the
otherwise unremarkable shrine. The roof above the shrine contains some good, but
unremarkable brickwork.
Because of the ratio between the height and width of the minarets and the width
of the eivan, if you climb into one minaret and shake it, the other will shake
in unison.This constant shaking has been responsible for considerable structural
damage!
There is another pair of shaking minarets built during the time of Oljeitu, at
Oshtorjan, although these have lost the upper two thirds.
The wooden beams on the upper part of the minarets have been placed there to
facilitate the shaking of the minarets, but the presence of wood in the
brickwork causes other complications. Shaking is in theory restricted to once
every twenty minutes, however, particularly during holidays, there is a constant
stream of visitors who experiment with the phenomenon, and the visitor will have
ample chance to observe it from ground level, without running the risk of being
blamed for any further dereliction.
This is probably the most famous of Isfahan's bridges. It is made up of a series of 33 arches and was commissioned in 1602 by Shah Abbas I from one of his Generals. The name - Si-o-Seh Pol is derived from the Farsi for 33 (Si-o-Seh). The bridge is built on a series of pontoons of great width and there is a famous tea-house amongst them which is accessible from the southern bank.
The bridge was originally known as the Bridge of Allahverdi Khan who was the
general responsible for its construction. The lower level of 33 arches is
surmounted by a second layer, with one arch above each of the pontoons and two
arches above the lower single arch, giving it its name and rhythmic appearance.
The road along the top is sandwiched between high walls which give some shelter
from the wind as well as protection for travellers who can walk along the
footpaths on either side to avoid the crush of the traffic.
The bridge itself is 295m long and 13.75m wide. The thirty four piers on which
it is constructed are 3.49m thick and the arches are 5.57m wide. The southern
side of the bridge, where the waters of the Zayandeh run more swiftly has
supplementary arches, and it is this that makles them suitable as a tea house.
The bridge acted as a springboard for the development of the Khajou Bridge some
50 years later.
This Palace which dates
from the time of Shah Abbas II is situated just to the west of the main Palace
of Ali Qapu and east of another palace, known as Hasht Behesht. It is currently
used as an officers' club by the army and is therefore closed to visitors. It
derives its name from the period when Isfahan was ruled by Afghanis whose
leader, Ashraf, made this building his headquarters.
Beside it is the Natural History Museum which is housed in another fine palace
whose somewhat unpreposessing exterior belies the elaborate decoration inside.
This is open to the public and is architecturally very similar.
Midan e Shah ( midan e nghsh Jahan)
Before Shah AbbasI rebuilt this square there used to be a much smaller square
called Naghsh-e-Jahan - The Design of the World.
The picture above, taken
looking north from the entrance to the Royal Mosque - shows the considerable
size of the square which is 500 metres long and 150 metres wide. It was
originally conceived as a polo ground and open square in front of the Royal
Palace of Ali Qapu, on the left, but was re-designed this century to include the
formal lawns and large pool.
On the right of the picture is one of the loveliest of all Iranian domes, the
dome of the Sheikh Lotfallah Mosque, and at the far end of the square is the
entrance to the Royal bazaar, The Qaysariya. The bazaar in Isfahan is said to be
the largest in Iran, its southern entrance is at the north end of the Square and
it crawls north via a convoluted route to the main Mosque of Isfahan, the
Masjed-e-Jomeh where it splits into a number of smaller bazaars as its way up to
the old quarter of Dardasht past the Tomb of Soltan Bakht Agha with its
crumbling but impressive minarets.
The square is completely surrounded by wide galleries in which you can now find
a number of shops and also some parts of the bazaar. The metalworkers' bazaar,
for example is on the left beyond the Palace and the noise of craftsmen banging
out their wares can be heard all over the Square. On the right at the far end
are the spice shops. The entrances to the Square are in the corners. From the
northwest corner one can visit the Palace of Chehel Sotoon, while from the
Southwest a road leads behind the Palace of Ali Qapu to the Palace of Hasht
Behesht and the Talar of Ashraf. To the South east lies the shrine of Imamzadeh
Ahmad with its curious Bakhtiari Lions while to the north-east the road leads to
the Friday Mosque, the Masjed-e-Jomeh.
The royal mosque, formerly called the Masjed-e-Shah
was the crowning architectural achievement of Shah Abbas I who built it to
complete the magnificent central square of Isfahan. The mosque is celebrated for
the magnificence of its haft rang tilework and staggers the visitor with its
opulence and inventiveness. The view above shows the mosque as seen from the
centre of square in the late evening. Shah Abbas sadly died before it was
completed, although he put enormous pressure on his builders and architects.
Some uncertainty surrounds the date on which the Mosque was started. According
to Chardin work had begun in 1590, but other sources say that Shah Abbas I laid
the first stone himself in the spring of 1611. 'Ali Reza, the great
calligrapher, who was responsible for the inscriptions in the mosque, dated the
main entrance in 1616, but work was clearly unfinished as there are records of
orders being placed as late as 1630. The architect was Ostad Abu'l-Ghasem. There
are estimated to be 18 million bricks in the building and the rivetments are
said to contain 472,500 tiles.
It represents the peak of Iranian architecture, later mosques such as the Masjed-e-Hakim
are either derivative, in this case of Seljuk originals, or overly influenced by
European designs as in the case of the 19th century Masjed-e-Sayyed. The great
dome of Madrasa Mader-e-Shah, The Royal Theological College, which was completed
towards the end of the Safavid period in 1714 derives its inspiration and
splendour from this one, but the remainder of the complex is disappointing.
When Shah Abbas rebuilt Isfahan he was as
much concerned with commerce as with security. The original bazaar had been
concentrated in the vicinity of the Masjed-e-Jomeh. Shah Abbas wanted the
commercial life of the city to be closer to the seat of Government and extended
the original bazaar by building a new larger commercial area to the north of his
main square. The entrance to the bazaar, which was built in 1619, is called the
Qaysarriyeh.
The spandrels contain centaur-like figures turning back and shooting. These may
have referred back to the Parthian habit of turning round in the saddle, when
apparently in retreat, to shower your enemy with arrows, but were also surely a
reference to the influence which was felt to be exercised over the city by the
constellation Sagittarius.
There is some useful work to be done, it seems to me, in testing the hypothesis
that the unusual orientation of the main square relates in some way to the
azimuth and altitude of the constellation. My own measurements indicate that the
long axis of the square lies at an angle of 346 degrees N., and this results in
considerable ingenuity being required to orient the Mehrabs in the two mosques
at the Eastern and Southern ends of the square correctly.
Esfahan silk rug (Haft shahr e Eshgh)
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