"The meaningful Impact of
Persian architecture Is
versatile. New overwhelming
and dignified, magnificent
and impressive, charmingly
fairy. like."; A.U. Pope
Persian architecture can be
considered through the
age-old history of the land.
It goes back to the late 6th
and early 5th millennia BC
Persian architecture has
been a comprehensive
embodiment of Iranian
psychology and
characteristics in different
historical periods. In
studying Persian
architecture four distinc,
protracted, but continuous
periods are distinguished,
as follows:
- Persian prehistoric
architecture till the
formation of the first
national governmet by
the Medes.
- Persian architecture
from the Medes period
till the end of
Sassanians.
- Islamic period
architecture till the
end of Safavi period.
- Contemporary and
present-Day Persian
architecture.
In
connection with the present
review of Persian
architecture, the reader is
reminded of a varying range
of other arts applied by the
inhabitants of Iran to
decorate their different
constructions. In short,
such arts are: stone
carving, stucco carving and
plaster work, painting, tile
work, brick work, mirror
glasswork, honey comb work,
mosaic work, and several
other ornamental arts.
On the
other hand, one has to
consider the exceptional
multiformity of buildings in
terms of design and
application. This diversity
has arisen as a result of
particular requirements and
the rich tastes of Iranian
artists through different
periods of history.
Iranian
artists have proved capable
of greeting a wide range of
monuments in various
branches of architecture,
thus providing the world
with their unique artistic
talents.
It seems
rather difficult to classify
Iranian architectural works
from the earliest periods
till the present Day. But,
the following arrangement
might give a vista of such
works: prehistoric huts,
early villages and towns,
fortresses and
fortifications, temples and
fire temples, mausoleums,
massive ancient palaces,
dams and bridges, bazaars,
baths, roads, magnificent
mosques, towers and
minarets, religious
buildings and sites from the
Islamic period, as well as
other monuments scattered
all over Iran. Other
significant aspects with
deep influences on Iranian
architecture were the
vastness of Iranian plateau
with differing climates,
climatic conditions, and
characteristics of people
who had been scattered in
various sites. As an
example, the architectural
styles at highlands and
mountainous areas are
different from those at
coastal and desert areas.
Now based on such an endless
and marvelous versatility
which may not be encountered
in most countries, here we
will have a transient look
at Persian architecture to
give a simple sketch of it.
Despite its simplicity, the
sketch too, would be a rich
reflection of the unique
aspects of Persian
architecture.
A
discussion of ancient
Persian architecture will be
impossible without making
use of archaeological
findings and referring to
the comments given by the
corresponding experts.
One of the
oldest monuments discovered
in the Iranian plateau is
the painted building of
Zaghe Tepe in Qazvin plain.
Its history goes back to the
late 7th and early 6th
millennia BC Considering the
availability of materials in
prehistoric period, the
painted building of Zaghe
Tepe has been ornamented and
decorated as far as
possible. The building was
intended and used for a sort
of social gathering and
holding of meetings. A great
number of platforms and
gardenias were provided for
those attending the
gatherings and meetings. A
feature of the building is
its fireplace used to heat
the interior in cold season,
plus a brazier used to roast
skewed meat (kabob). This
ancient building was
provided with two
depositories to keep the
tools and equipment, and a
smaller chamber as a living
room. Walls are painted and
decorated with images of
wild goat. Most probably,
the painted building of
Zaghe Tepe had the function
of a temple, religious
place, and gathering center
of the ne6lithic tribes in
Iran.
Tepe
Sialk, an important Tell
near Kashan, represents
another prehistoric site in
Iran, whose inhabitants were
the initiators of a simple
and rudimentary housing
technique. In its 5 phases
of excavation, remains of
buildings were unearthed the
oldest of which belongs to
the late 6th and early 5th
millennia BC.
At the
beginning of his settlement
an Sialk, man didn't know
how to build a house yet,
and used to live under huts
made of tree branches. Soon,
building began with handmade
mud brick on the remains of
previous settlements.
During the
4th millennia BC, Sialk
settlements became more
spacious and given doors the
installation openings of
which are clearly visible.
These buildings were made of
lumps of earth and mud
brick. The rudimentary
handmade mud bricks were
oval in the shape and dried
in the sun. The
architectural decoration saw
the walls of rooms painted
red. Doors were small and
narrow, their heights not
exceeding 80-90 cm.
Tepe
Hassan near Damghan,
Tell-i-lblis within a 72-km
distance from Kerman, and
Tepe Hasanlu in West
Azarbaijan, are among other
prehistoric sites of Iran in
which architectural
monuments of various periods
have been excavated and
unearthed.
In
excavations of Tepe Hasanlu,
three massive buildings were
discovered, which had been
built on similar plans.
Their history dates back
from 800 BC to 1000 BC The
buildings had been provided
with entrance gates, paved
courtyards, rooms, nooks,
and smaller store rooms. In
l-lasanlu architecture,
buildings seem to have been
wooden (for the first time),
square, tower-like
structures, with columns
which may have been tree
trunks and erected on uncut
plinths. One room was found
to be paved with mud bricks.
The interesting point is
that another room had been
used as kitchen, with a row
of platforms and fireplace
around it.
One of the
most significant 13th
century BC
architectural works of Iran
is the Choga Zanbil Temple
(1250 BC) located in 45 km
from Susa, an ancient
Iranian town on the bank of
Karkheh river Province of
Khuzestan, southwest Iran.
It was built by Huntash
Huban the Elamite king on
the ruins of ancient Elamite
city of Dur-Untash.
The temple
represents a splendid symbol
of a highly developed
architecture. The building
is square in shape and
consists of five stories,
each of which is smaller
than the one below it giving
a conic appearance to the
building. The main temple is
constructed on the last
floor. Construction
materials of the temple are
mainly glazed kiln-fired
bricks of high quality bound
together with a very strong
mortar (containing natural
bitumen). The mud brick is
used between walls and
plates.
The
western vaults of Choga
Zanbil Temple were so
skillfully built that at
present, even after three
thousand years, they are
remaining in marvelously
good conditions. The vaults
are constructed on prolonged
corridors and over internal
staircases of the temple,
and represent an
extraordinary achievement in
the architecture of ancient
Iran.
What
shocks one in the Choga
Zanbil architecture, is the
initiative of the artists of
the period in devising and
constructing a potable water
treatment system. The water
from refinery was used by
the worshippers and other
dwellers of the city.
No doubt,
this system was man's first
invention for water
treatment, which was first
carried out by Iranians.
Various researches and
numerous detailed studies
have been published by the
archaeologists and scholars
in this connection.
Dr. E.
Negahban, Iranian
archaeologist, writes in
this connection: "Among
important buildings to be
observed in the Choga Zanbil
system of buildings there is
one used to treat drinking
water for the inhabitants of
Dur-Untash city. The water
was craned to the system
through a network of canals
constructed on accepted
scientific principles, where
it was treated. The
following is a short
description of how water was
transmitted to Choga Zanbil
and treated therein:
"The
engineers, having excavated
a canal, transmitted water
from Karkheh River in a
distance of 35 km from the
temple into a huge
reservoir. The Karkheh river
is muddy all over the year.
The reservoir walls had been
rendered with a layer of
natural bitumen. The water
was treated by passing
through various layers of
sand, gravel and coal. A
certain percent of salt and
lime, too, were added as
bactericides. The treated
water was transmitted to
smaller basins through nine
narrower canals from under
the main reservoir. The
system adopted the
communicating vessels law.
It shows that the
communicating vessels law
had been discovered and
practically applied in Iran
almost 3,700 year before
Pascal. Professor Ghirshman,
a French archaeologist who
led the excavations at Choga
Zanbil site, writes:
"Ziggurat
is the Sumerian word for
such massive buildings."
Among
Sumerians the word Ziggurat
means a building reaching
heavens. Ghirshman gives a
height of 62m for the
Ziggurat and a length of
105.20m for each side of the
first floor.
Professor
A.U. Pope, writes in
connection with this temple:
There existed throughout the
ancient Near East a tendency
to admire and worship
mountain. Huge Ziggurats
relieved the flat monotony
of the Mesopotanian plain,
ntual imitations of the
familiar sacred mountains
which ring the Iranian
plateau. The Elamites were
the first inhabitants of the
present Day Khuzistan
Province in southwest Iran,
and their kingdom was
established in 3rd
millennium BC Perhaps the
greatest of all Ziggurats,
is the Choga Zanbil. This
earliest known Iranian
monument of imposing
dimensions and character,
rivaling the pyramids of
Egypt, was built at
Dur-Untash, a city near
Susa, by Untash-Gal, King of
Elam, about 1250 BC
Here we see three worship
places and a number of
courtyards paved with baked
bricks. The walls of the
Ziggurat were extensively
faced with glazed kiln-fired
brick, blue and green and of
a metallic shimmer. Invalid
ivory mosaics were also used
and wooden doors were
decorated with opaque glass
mosaics which depicted
prancing animals.
The first
Iranian kingdom was
established by the Medes
(800 BC). Their king,
Cyaxares, chose Ekbatana
(modern Hamedan, 336 km from
Tehran) as his capital.
Ekbatana had been one of the
earliest Iranian towns built
on architectural and urban
principles.
Herodotus
(480-428 BC), a Greek
historian, writes that in
building Ekbatana, Iranians
have stuck to urban planning
principles prevailing among
them. The word Ekbatana
means "a gathering place".
The city was built on a road
through which the Assyrians
could penetrate into the
land of Medes. That is why
the architecture played such
an important role in
preventing the enemy from
penetrating into the city.
The first
monument unearthed in
archaeological excavations
is the Royal Palace of the
Medes Kings at Ekbatana. The
palace is a two-story
building surrounded by
fortifications and tower.
From this point of view, it
can be considered a
turning-point in Iranian
architecture. Use of wood on
the second story and
installation of windows and
other openings for rooms,
are among the advantages of
the Median architecture of
the period. Although very
few monuments have remained
of the Median architecture,
they suffice to clearly show
its artistic values and
characteristics.
In
addition to the remnants of
Ekbatana, we can see a
number of rock cut tombs
which embody the Median
architecture and stone
carving arts. These tombs
are highly important,
because some of their
elements can be seen in
later Achaemenid mausoleums
and tombs.
Formation
of the Achaemenid dynasty
(560-330 BC) marks one of
the brilliant ages in
Persian architecture. The
Achaemenid kingdom was a
very vast empire; spreading
from Indus river in India to
Nile river in Egypt and
Benghazi (present-Day
Libya),from Danub in Europe
to Central Asia.
Development of Achaemenid
architecture can be searched
for in such a vast empire.
Among the best architectural
monuments of the period, one
might mention mausoleums,
fire-temples, and palaces.
Ruins of Achaemenid palaces
already exist in Pasargard,
Susa and Persepolis.
Achaemenid palaces were
built of a sort of gray and
slender stones. Walls were
of mud brick and stone
facing. A striking feature
of Achaemenid architecture
were great dimensions of the
halls. One of the main
construction elements of the
period is the existence of
artificial platforms
standing against a rugged
mountain the Royal residence
used to be built on such
platforms The palaces and
various buildings were built
with the idea of creating a
beautiful landscape in
mind." Apart from mud
bricks, extremely versatile
bricks including glazed
bricks, were used in the
buildings of Achaemenid
period, which reflects the
skills of the artists.
Choghazanbil Temple
Glazed
bricks in blue, white,
yellow, and green with
animal and floral ornaments,
were developments of this
period. Also, cold or hot
climate buildings, used
appropriate technical
principles. Splendid halls,
wide hallways and massive
stone columns seen in these
buildings, are elements of a
particular architectural
school of the period.
One of the
magnificent monuments of
Achaemenid architecture is
Pasargard palace at Shiraz.
Pasargad is the oldest
imperial capital city of the
world. Remnants of the
palace show that it had been
one of the most splendid
buildings of the world, the
splendor of which can be
observed even now after
2,500 years. The
architecture of Pasargad is
the art which culminated in
the construction of
Persepolis.
Pasargad
palace is situated about
600m from the tomb of Cyrus
the Great. With the
exception of single enduring
structure, Pasargad is now
largely in ruins, but one
can see that how imposing it
must have been in many
respects.
Pasargad
palace consists of a central
hall, four vans on four
sides of the hall, and two
rooms on both sides of its
southern ivan. The hall
floor was paved with marble.
The slender columns of the
palace were ornamented and
crowned by striking bull or
lion capitals. Entrances are
of polished black stone.
Concerning
Pasargad, Professor A.U.
Pope writes: The building
system of Pasargad is
constructed on an area which
is 2.5 km in length. Palaces
are constructed with cut
stones and relieves. The
buildings were constructed
in 550 BC, during the reign
of Cyrus the Great. Massive
black and white stones and
colossal human-headed winged
bulls or winged angels are
used to construct and
decorate the palace. Plaster
work is also used in the
palace, with paintings on
it. On both sides of the 78
main gates, high relief
images of the king are seen.
Behind the
king, servants are holding
an umbrella above his head.
For the first time in
Iranian sculpture, dresses
are elegantly embodied.
Relieves of the king's dress
are ornamented with gold.
Tomb of
Cyrus the Great is situated
in the south of Pasargad, in
a rectangular chamber with
walls of mud brick. The tomb
is placed on top of a
six-stage platform and
surrounded by staircases.
The whole building is of
colossal cut limestone which
is rather whitish, elegant
and marble-like. The tomb
ceiling is covered with five
huge flat stones in the form
of a peaked roof. Pasargad
complex might be considered
a complete manifestation of
Persian architecture.
Persepolis
is another architectural
masterpiece of ancient Iran.
This splendid and majestic
building, the remains of
which are scattered near
Shiraz, Fars Province (south
Iran), marvels its visitors.
Persepolis
is constructed on a huge
platform of 125,000m2,
backed up against a rugged
mountain. Its construction
date goes back to about 516
BC The construction uses
black limestones similar to
marble, excavated and
brought to the site from
quarries in a distance of 40
km on the west of
Persepolis.
Throughout
the centuries, famous
travelers, archaeologists
and Iranologists who have
visited the remnants of
Persepolis, have described
it with the most beautiful
words. From their point of
view, Persepolis is a symbol
of Iranian architecture in
the ancient period. The high
relieves on its colossal
columns, gates, and
stairways of Iranian
architecture.
Various
artists from Media, Egypt
and Libya had been employed
to construct the numerous
palaces of Persepolis.
However, as Professor A.U.
Pope puts it, what the
Persian architects brought
in from the outside was
merged with and balanced in
the Iranian art, giving rise
to ensemble quite new and
different from the art of
those nations from which
they might have been
derived.
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The
greatest architectural and
sculptural monuments of
ancient Iran are remaining
in Persepolis. In this
massive building, the
Achaemenid architects have
managed to combine beauty
and magnificence. Standing
on its rock-cut podium, the
great hall of Persepolis
contained thirty-six columns
(in six rows), 18.5m high.
The walls were of mud brick
and ornamented with painted
and floral designs. Ivory,
gold, and precious stones
were among materials used in
the mosaic works of the
hall. Persepolis was not a
political and administrative
capital of the Achaemenids.
It was a sacred national
shrine, potent sensing for
the spring festival, Now
Ruz. The festival was
celebrated on the first Day
of spring, among certain
formalities.
Representative of nations
subjected by the Achaemenid
Empire would offer their
gifts in this palace.
Apadana palace is one of the
most attractive palaces of
Persepolis. Golden tablets
unearthed from under the
plinths of the palace
columns give its date of
construction in 6th century
BC The tablets, now kept in
Ancient Iran Museum, were
discovered inside stone
boxes. Their inscriptions in
the languages of old
Persian, Ela mite, and
Babylonian, give remarkable
accounts of how Persepolis
was built. Palace of Xerxes,
Palace of Darius 1, Gate of
All Nations, Treasury, Hall
of a Hundred Columns, and
Throne Hall of Xerxes are
among the most significant
structures so far discovered
in Persepolis. Stone columns
are among the main
architectural elements of
Achaemenid period. Four
types of capital have been
used in Persepolis:
bull-headed, lion-headed,
horned lion (a legendary
animal), and man's head.
The
official arts of this
ancient kingdom of Iran are
completely embodied in
Persepolis. Stone carving
remained of Persepolis, too,
are marvelous. Only in one
stone carving more than a
hundred soldiers known as
"eternal guards" are seen in
military gestures. In
another stone carving, the
courtiers and noblemen are
attending Now Ruz ceremony,
as well as representatives
of various subjected nations
and tribes from different
parts of the empire offering
their tributes and gifts to
the court. Among these,
representatives of 28
different nations and tribes
can be distinguished from
their dresses.
The
stairways of Persepolis are
another reflection of the
majesty and splendor of
Achaemenid architecture, cut
out of huge stones. Each row
consists of 111 steps. The
steps are so low in height
that one can ascend them
mounted on a horse.
The
Gate of All Nations in
Persepolis is a gate through
which the representatives of
all Iranian nations and
tribes used to arrive and
proceed towards the Audience
Hall Persepolis, the
greatest architectural
treasure of Iran, was
destroyed and burned down by
Alexander in 330 BC However,
it remnants are the most
valuable heritage of Persian
architecture for other
nations of the world.
Susa Palace is another
important architectural
monument of Achaemenid
period. A valuable
inscription was discovered
at Susa which gives a good
account of its construction
by Darius I. Ruins of this
palace show how skillfully
the stones were carved and
ornamented for architectural
purposes at that period.
After the fall of Achaemenid
Empire, we are witness to a
period of stagnation in the
development of Parthian
architecture, which resulted
from a hundred years of
domination by Alexander and
his successors - Seleucids.
Parthians managed to
oust Seleucids from
the mainland Iran
after successive
fights against
Macedonian forces,
and establish the
Parthian dynasty
(174 BC - 224 A.D.).
Diakonov, a Soviet
archaeologist,
considered the
Parthian
architecture to be
under the influence
of Greek art.
However, the idea
cannot be applied to
all aspects of
Parthian
architecture. An
architectural form
known as Ogee to the
European and zigzag
molding to the
Iranian architects,
is of Parthian
origin.
Parthian
architects used to
construct palace
walls with cut
stones. They also
used stucco to
render the walls.
The themes of their
stuccos were
geometrical lines
and floral designs.
In stone carving,
attention was paid
to the creation of
equestrian statues
in relief. |
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Some of the relieves created
by great Parthian artists
are remaining in Behistan
(Bisotun) and Susa.
Sasanians (224-642 BC) were
from the Province of Pars,
who revived the glories of
Achaemenid Persia and
created a national art. The
Sasanian architectural style
can be distinguished from
the existing ruins of
palaces, worship places,
fortifications, bridges, and
dams. Sasanians built big
towns the remnants of which
remind us of their
remarkable achievement and
breadth of mind. An
outstanding feature of their
architecture is the
construction of high-rising
brick vaults wider than any
vault in the known world of
the period. Taq-i-Kisra at
Ctesiphon (present-Day Iraq)
with a great open vault
which spans 75 feet, is 90
feet high and nearly 150
feet deep, and considered
one of the most splendid
palaces of Sasanian period.
Artists used stone and
strong gypsum as their
construction materials and
ornamented their creatures
with unique stucco or mosaic
works.
The
Sasanian architecture went
further beyond the borders
of Iran and left its impacts
on the arts of India,
Turkmanistan, China, Syria,
Asia Minor, Constantinople,
the Balkans, Egypt and
Spain.
Construction of huge gates
and massive domes was a
common practice in Sasanian
architecture, which
reappears in the mosques and
palaces of Islamic period.
Vaults of baked bricks, are
among the innovations of
Sasanian architects. Stone
was not used as a constant
construction material by
these architects. However,
they have shown their skill
in making use other
materials, particularly
brick and gypsum. They took
new steps in developing
vaults and domes. Ctesiphon
was the largest and most
splendid Sasanian capital
city, the ruins of which are
already standing on the bank
of Tigris River.
The
greatest stone carving
monument of Sasanian
architecture is situated
near Darab Gerd (Fars
Province) and known as
Naqsh-i-Rustam. This
magnificent monument is an
embodiment of the victory of
Shapur I over the Roman
Emperor Valerian (260
AD). Here, similar to
Pasargad, there are two
stone fireplaces which were
used in fire worshipping
ceremonies. The most
remarkable stone carving at
Naqsh-i-Rustam is seen on
the upper front of the tomb
of Darius the Great. The
statue of Darius is carved
as a 2.70m high profile
looking right, in the most
artistic way. Darius is
standing on a three-step
platform with a crenellated
crown on his head. Besides,
two Parsi military
commanders are also carved
on the tomb wall.
Bishapur was another town of
Sasanian period built by
Shapur I in Fars (Province),
the remnants of which are
existing at the site. The
sculpture of the period can
be sought for in Bishapur
relieves, which reached its
peak of development in that
period. Some of the relieves
are among the masterpieces
of sculpture art. The
Bishapur relieves are
portrayals of the king's
investiture by Ahura Mazda,
his victories, his
enthronement, his wars and
huntings.
During Sasanian period,
stucco art achieves a higher
rank. All Sasanian palaces
are decorated with stucco.
The artists have mainly used
geometric designs and floral
patterns to complete their
stucco ornaments.
Wall painting too, had been
used during this period.
Murals had existed in
ancient Asia Minor.
Outstanding indications of
this art were found from the
4th millennium BC onward.
Its beginning in Apadana,
Susa, and Persepolis can be
traced in the 2nd millennium
BC.
Achaemenid art. It was
widely used in Parthian
period, and Sasanian artists
proved to be loyal
successors to Parthian art
of painting. A remarkable
example of this art is a
hunting scene at Susa grated
by Sasanian artists.
As
put by the archaeologists,
the early Sasanian kings
used to carve their bias
relieves on rocks near
Persepolis, but their
successors selected
Taq-i-Bustan rock mean
Kermanshah, west Iran, for
this purpose.
Kermanshah was situated on
the old Silk Road, at a site
which was called "the Gate
to Asia" by Professor
Herzbeld.
The
coronation scene of Ardashir
II (279-383 A.D.) has been
carved on two lateral fronts
of the great cave of
Taq-i-Bustan. The imperial
hunting grounds are also
portrayed in bias relief. A
boat is floating ahead on a
leaf. The king is standing
on it and hunting the
boards. Behind the king's
boat, other boats are moving
ahead, wherein are sitting
the musicians while playing
and signing. In another
scene of this huge rock
carving, the hunted animals
are shown on the back of
huge elephants.
The
Sasanian artists were
propagating the artistic
achievements of many
thousand years of Persian
plateau from India through
Pyrenees. Shami is another
Iranian temple of the period
situated on the left bank of
Karun river, at the foot of
Bakhtiari mountains,
southwest Iran, wherein a
number of valuable art works
of Sasanians have been
unearthed.
Sasanian art as used in
architecture is not limited
only to the construction of
towns, palaces, and massive
rock carvings. Sasanian
artists were also great
masters in constructing
arch dams and bridges, (to
be reviewed later). Several
Iranologists have written a
Jot about the splendor of
Sasanian art and its impacts
on other nations and
artists.
However, the most concise
remarks in this connection
were made by the late A.U.
Pope renowned Iranologist,
as follows: "Sasanian art is
the culminating phase of
ancient east arts. As a
message from a global
Empire, it is the product of
an eastern resurrection and
bridges the gap between
ancient Asiatic as well as
modern Islamic and Medieval
civilizations. Sasanian
Iran, by transmitting its
inherited traditions to the
Islamic world, and by
relying on its artistic
heritage, newer
civilizations.
Advent of Islam in Fran (635
A.D.) gave rise to great
upheavals in architecture,
and laid the foundations for
Islamic architecture all
over the world. To be sure,
no Persian building from the
first two Islamic centuries
have survived, but from
third center onward, Islamic
building flourished rapidly
and marvelously expanded
during the next centuries.
A
great surge of building
works together with unique
decorations and calligraphy
appeared in these centuries.
To learn more about the
Islamic period refer to the
next page. |