The Lajim Tower (), also known as Tomb Tower of Lajim, is a cylindrical tower used as a

mausoleum A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be considered a type o ...

, that is located in the village of Lajim near Savadkuh, in the province of

Mazandaran Mazandaran Province (; ) is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. Its capital is the city of Sari, Iran, Sari. Located along the southern coast of the Caspian Sea and in the adjacent Central Alborz mountain range and Hyrcanian forests, it is border ...

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 ...

. The tower was completed in , during the

Bavand dynasty The Bavand dynasty () (also spelled Bavend), or simply the Bavandids, was an Iranian dynasty that ruled in parts of Tabaristan (present-day Mazandaran province) in what is now northern Iran from 651 until 1349, alternating between outright inde ...

that ruled over the region at the time. The mausoleum was added to the

Iran National Heritage List Iran National Heritage List is a register of nationally significant monuments, places, buildings, events, etc., officially registered under the National Heritage Preservation Act of 1930. According to Article 1 of this law, "All the industrial mon ...

on 24 January 1935 and is administered by the

Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization of Iran The Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts of Iran () is an educational and research institution overseeing numerous associated museum complexes throughout Iran. It is administered and funded by the Government of Iran. It was f ...

Architecture

The tower has a cylindrical

burial chamber A chamber tomb is a tomb for burial used in many different cultures. In the case of individual burials, the chamber is thought to signify a higher status for the interred than a simple grave. Built from rock or sometimes wood, the chambers could ...

crowned by a double

dome A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...

, though the outer dome has not survived. It is likely the outer dome was originally

conical In geometry, a cone is a three-dimensional figure that tapers smoothly from a flat base (typically a circle) to a point not contained in the base, called the ''apex'' or '' vertex''. A cone is formed by a set of line segments, half-lines, ...

in shape, typical for tomb towers in the region from the same period. The interior of the building, from the base to the conical dome, is perfectly round. The entrance to the burial chamber is on the eastern side. The structure is high, with an outer diameter of . From the base to the conical dome, the diameter of the tower is . Decorative features are concentrated below the dome surrounding the entrance. Directly below the dome is a row of shallow arched niches. Below this is a narrow band of geometric patterns, separating it from two inscriptive bands. The upper band is written in Pahlavi, the language of the pre-Islamic

Sasanian Empire The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranian peoples, Iranians"), was an List of monarchs of Iran, Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, th ...

, and the lower band is in the

Kufic The Kufic script () is a style of Arabic script, that gained prominence early on as a preferred script for Quran transcription and architectural decoration, and it has since become a reference and an archetype for a number of other Arabic scripts ...

calligraphic style. The Pahlavi inscription is largely damaged and has not yet been deciphered. The Kufic inscription contains the name of the person buried in the tomb – Abu'l Favaris Shahriyar bin Abbas bin Shahriyar, and bears the date . It has been claimed that the Kufic inscription reads, in

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

: The Lajim Tower inscriptions represent the first known use of the word "

qubba A ''qubba'' (, pl. ''qubāb''), also transliterated as ḳubba, kubbet and koubba, is a cupola or domed structure, typically a tomb or shrine in Islamic architecture. In many regions, such as North Africa, the term ''qubba'' is applied commonly f ...

" referring to the domed structure of the building, demonstrating the architectural influence of Islam in the region. The tower was an important monument that drew the attention of North Iranian rulers who valued pre-Islamic art and script. The entranceway is crowned by a pointed arch and set inside a shallow niche with a second pointed arch. Its tympanum features a brick

honeycomb A honeycomb is a mass of Triangular prismatic honeycomb#Hexagonal prismatic honeycomb, hexagonal prismatic cells built from beeswax by honey bees in their beehive, nests to contain their brood (eggs, larvae, and pupae) and stores of honey and pol ...

pattern. The plain cylindrical interior chamber is lit solely by the entrance.

Use

For many years, it was believed that the tower contained the tomb of Imamzadeh Abdullah, a misconception subsequently corrected. The tower was originally a military structure, part of the Bavand rulers' fortifications. However, it later became the burial site for a prominent figure of the Bavand dynasty. In 1938, the tower was restored from materials sourced in Tehran in partnership with the Shirgah Traverse Manufacturing factory. Further restorations were completed in the 1990s to repair serious damage to the Kufic inscription, took. Since these restorations, the tower has become an

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

ic pilgrimage site for residents of the Lajim village and surrounding rural areas of Savadkuh. The ornately carved inscriptions under the dome make the brick structure an artistically significant example of ancient Iranian architecture and design.

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External links

* {{Towers in Iran 1020s establishments in Asia Bavandid architecture Buildings and structures in Mazandaran province Buildings and structures completed in 1022 Domes in Iran Mausoleums in Iran Mausoleums, shrines and tombs on the Iran National Heritage List Religious buildings and structures with domes Round towers Tourist attractions in Mazandaran province Towers in Iran Towers completed in the 11th century Ziyarid dynasty

Architecture

Use

See also

Notes

References

Further reading

External links