The Bazaar of Tabriz (, also

Romanize In linguistics, romanization is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, and transcription, ...

d as ''Bāzār-e Tabriz'' , also

d as ''Tabriz Bazari'') is a historic market in central

Tabriz Tabriz (; ) is a city in the Central District (Tabriz County), Central District of Tabriz County, in the East Azerbaijan province, East Azerbaijan province of northwestern Iran. It serves as capital of the province, the county, and the distric ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. It is one of the oldest

bazaar A bazaar or souk is a marketplace consisting of multiple small Market stall, stalls or shops, especially in the Middle East, the Balkans, Central Asia, North Africa and South Asia. They are traditionally located in vaulted or covered streets th ...

s in the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

and the largest covered bazaar in the world. It is one of Iran's

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

History

has been a place of cultural exchange since antiquity. Its historic bazaar complex is one of the most important commercial centres on the

Silk Road The Silk Road was a network of Asian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century. Spanning over , it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and religious interactions between the ...

. A bazaar has existed on the same site since the early periods of Iranian urbanism following Islam. The bazaar was mentioned by the Venetian traveler

Marco Polo Marco Polo (; ; ; 8 January 1324) was a Republic of Venice, Venetian merchant, explorer and writer who travelled through Asia along the Silk Road between 1271 and 1295. His travels are recorded in ''The Travels of Marco Polo'' (also known a ...

, who claimed to have passed through it while journeying on the Silk Road.

Al-Maqdisi Shams al-Din Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Abi Bakr, commonly known by the ''Nisba (onomastics), nisba'' al-Maqdisi or al-Muqaddasī, was a medieval Arab geographer, author of ''The Best Divisions in the Knowledge of the Regions'' and '' ...

in 10th century,

Yaqut al-Hamawi Yāqūt Shihāb al-Dīn ibn-ʿAbdullāh al-Rūmī al-Ḥamawī (1179–1229) () was a Muslim scholar of Byzantine ancestry active during the late Abbasid period (12th–13th centuries). He is known for his , an influential work on geography con ...

in ca. 1213 CE,

Zakariya al-Qazwini Zakariyya' al-Qazwini ( , ), also known as Qazvini (), (born in Qazvin, Iran, and died 1283), was a Cosmography, cosmographer and Geography in medieval Islam, geographer. He belonged to a family of jurists originally descended from Anas bin Mal ...

in ca. 1252 CE,

in 1271 CE,

Odoric of Pordenone Odoric of Pordenone (c. 1280–14 January 1331) was a Franciscan friar and missionary explorer from Friuli in northeast Italy. He journeyed through India, Sumatra, Java, and China, where he spent three years in the imperial capital of Khanbaliq ...

in ca. 1321 CE,

Ibn Battuta Ibn Battuta (; 24 February 13041368/1369), was a Maghrebi traveller, explorer and scholar. Over a period of 30 years from 1325 to 1354, he visited much of Africa, the Middle East, Asia and the Iberian Peninsula. Near the end of his life, Ibn ...

in ca. 1330 CE, Ambrogio Contarini in 1474 CE, Hamdallah Mustawfi in around 13th to 14th century, John Cartwright in 1606 CE, Jean Chardin at the time of Suleiman I of Persia, Jean-Baptiste Tavernier in ca. 1636 CE, Giovanni Francesco Gemelli Careri in ca. 1642 CE and dozens of other explorers and historians have written about the Bazaar of Tabriz, which shows its importance and significance through the different periods of history. Located in the center of the city of

, the structure is divided into rows, many devoted to particular categories of product. These include Amir Bazaar (for gold and jewelry), Mozzafarieh (hand woven rugs, sorted by knot size and type), Bashmakhchi Bazaar (shoes), Kiz Basdi Bazaar, and Rahli Bazaar (produce). Tabriz and its bazaar were at their most prosperous in the 16th century, when the town became the capital city of

Safavid Iran The Guarded Domains of Iran, commonly called Safavid Iran, Safavid Persia or the Safavid Empire, was one of the largest and longest-lasting Iranian empires. It was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often considered the begi ...

. The city lost this status in the 17th century, but its bazaar has remained important as a commercial and economic hub in the region and on the silk road. Although numerous modern shops and malls have been established in recent years, Tabriz Bazaar has kept its vital role as economic hub of the city and northwestern Iran. The bazaar was inscribed as a

in July 2010.

Ceremonies

The bazaar is used for some important religious ceremonies.

Restoration

In 2000, the Historical Hermitages Organization of Iran begin a restoration project of the Bazaar, with the full participation of the shop owners. The rehabilitation project won the

Aga Khan Award for Architecture The Aga Khan Award for Architecture (AKAA) is an architectural prize established by Aga Khan IV in 1977. It aims to identify and reward architectural concepts that successfully address the needs and aspirations of Muslim societies in the fie ...

in 2013.

Photo gallery

File:Mozzaffariyeh 2.jpg, Mozaffarieh, a major row for hand woven rugs in Tabriz Grand Bazaar. File:Ceiling of Mozaffariyeh, Grand Bazzar of Tabriz, IRAN.jpg, Mozaffariyeh, Bazaar of Tabriz. File:Mozaffariyeh Arcade.jpg, One of two entrance gates to Mozzafariyeh. File:Bazaar of Tabriz - April 2009.jpg, Dome in Amir row of Bazaar. File:Amir Timche.jpg, َ

Caravanserai A caravanserai (or caravansary; ) was an inn that provided lodging for travelers, merchants, and Caravan (travellers), caravans. They were present throughout much of the Islamic world. Depending on the region and period, they were called by a ...

near Amir row. File:Bazaar of Tabriz, carvaansray.jpg, A caravanserai in the Bazaar of Tabriz. File:Gan-Dallazan Bazar, Tabriz, Iran.jpg, Gan Bazaar, translates to wider bazaar, a row in Tabriz Grand Bazaar. File:Gan-Dallazan Bazar II, Tabriz, Iran.jpg, Gan Bazaar, a row in Tabriz Grand Bazaar. File:Tabriz Grand Bazar.jpg File:The world heritage base of Tabriz historical market complex 1.jpg File:Beautiful architecture tabriz bazaar.jpg File:Bazar 105.jpg File:Tabriz Bazar 002.jpg File:Tabriz Bazar 003.jpg File:Tabriz Bazar 001.jpg File:Amiralley-Tabriz.JPG File:Bazaar of Tabriz.JPG File:Bazaar of gold, tabriz.jpg File:The_Bazar_at_Tabriz.jpg File:Carpet Bazaar of Tabriz.JPG File:CarpetBazaar.Tabriz.jpg File:CarpetBazaar2.Tabriz.jpg File:Iran bazar tabriz street scene.jpg File:Tabriz-Carpet_Bazaar.jpg File:TabrizBazaar.JPG File:TabrizBazar.jpg

References

External links

Tishineh

(audio slideshow with English subtitles). Jadid Online. {{Portalbar, Iran Bazaars

Shopping malls established in the 16th century Tourist attractions in Tabriz World Heritage Sites in Iran Buildings and structures on the Iran National Heritage List