Takht-e Foulad
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The Takht-e Foulad (), also known as Lissanul Arz, is an historical, predominately
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, cemetery located in Esfahan, in the province of
Isfahan Isfahan or Esfahan ( ) is a city in the Central District (Isfahan County), Central District of Isfahan County, Isfahan province, Iran. It is the capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is located south of Tehran. The city ...
, Iran. It is a large funerary complex that includes several historic
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 ...
s,
mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...
s, tekyehs, sub-cemeteries and standalone graves. It is estimated that the cemetery was established in CE and is noted for its Safavid architecture. The cemetery was added to the Iran National Heritage List on 15 June 1996 and is administered by the Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization of Iran.


History

The exact origins of the cemetery are not known, but some historians have theorised that it may have pre-Islamic origins. During the rule of the Mongol
Ilkhanate The Ilkhanate or Il-khanate was a Mongol khanate founded in the southwestern territories of the Mongol Empire. It was ruled by the Il-Khans or Ilkhanids (), and known to the Mongols as ''Hülegü Ulus'' (). The Ilkhanid realm was officially known ...
in the 14th century, the mausoleum of Baba Rokneddin Shirazi was built, and the cemetery was named after him. The cemetery subsequently became a place for
Sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...
dervishes to have mystical gatherings. The cemetery was expanded during the Safavid era, under the rule of Shah Suleiman I. But later on during the rule of the Safavid Shah
Soltan Hoseyn Soltan Hoseyn (; 1668 – 9 September 1727) was the Safavid shah of Iran from 1694 to 1722. He was the son and successor of Shah Suleiman (). Born and raised in the royal harem, Soltan Hoseyn ascended the throne with limited life experience a ...
, many of the mausoleums from the Ilkhanid era were demolished, under the orders of Mohammad-Baqer Majlesi, the Shaykh-ol Islam hired by the ruler. The Sufis and their dervishes were also banned from visiting the cemetery, regardless whether they were Shi'ite or not. During the rule of
Nader Shah Afshar Nader Shah Afshar (; 6 August 1698 or 22 October 1688 – 20 June 1747) was the founder of the Afsharid dynasty of Afsharid Iran, Iran and one of the most powerful rulers in History of Iran, Iranian history, ruling as List of monarchs of Per ...
, the cemetery was largely ignored, save for a small number of burials. During the
Qajar era The Guarded Domains of Iran, alternatively the Sublime State of Iran and commonly called Qajar Iran, Qajar Persia or the Qajar Empire, was the Iranian state under the rule of the Qajar dynasty, which was of Turkic peoples, Turkic origin,Cyrus G ...
,
Fath-Ali Shah Qajar Fath-Ali Shah Qajar (; 5 August 1772 – 24 October 1834) was the second Shah of Qajar Iran. He reigned from 17 June 1797 until his death on 24 October 1834. His reign saw the irrevocable ceding of Iran's northern territories in the Caucasus, com ...
built a takyeh in the cemetery, which he dedicated to his mother. In the 20th century, however,
Mass'oud Mirza Zell-e Soltan Mass'oud Mirza Zell-e Soltan (, "Mass'oud Mirza the Sultan's Shadow"; 5 January 1850 in Tabriz – 2 July 1918 in Isfahan), or Massud Mirza, was an Iranian prince of the Qajar dynasty; he was known as the "Yamin-od-Dowleh" ("Right Hand of the Go ...
, the Qajar prince who governed
Isfahan Isfahan or Esfahan ( ) is a city in the Central District (Isfahan County), Central District of Isfahan County, Isfahan province, Iran. It is the capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is located south of Tehran. The city ...
, demolished several Safavid-era structures in the cemetery. Later on, in the 1980s, a sub-cemetery was established around the grave of cleric Abolhassan Shamsabadi, and in the cemetery were buried those who were killed in the Haft-e Tir Bombing and the
Iranian Revolution The Iranian Revolution (, ), also known as the 1979 Revolution, or the Islamic Revolution of 1979 (, ) was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. The revolution led to the replacement of the Impe ...
. During the Pahlavi era, the cemetery had become full. Locals were then forbidden from carrying out any further burials. They were still allowed to visit the sites in the cemetery, however.


Landmarks in the cemetery


Mausoleum of Baba Rokneddin

Baba Rukn al-Din, or Baba Rokneddin, was one of the most prominent Persian Sufis of the 14th century. He died in 1367, and the mausoleum was built during the Ilkhanid era. It had fallen into disrepair later on and was restored during the Safavid era under
Shah Abbas I Abbas I (; 27 January 1571 – 19 January 1629), commonly known as Abbas the Great (), was the fifth Safavid shah of Iran from 1588 to 1629. The third son of Shah Mohammad Khodabanda, he is generally considered one of the most important rulers ...
. It is the only structure from the Ilkhanid era to survive till modern day.


Khatoon Abadi Mausoleum

One of the takyeh buildings located in the cemetery. Clerics belonging to the Khatoon Abadi family are buried in there, an example being Mohammed Hossein Khatunabadi, a Shi'ite
Hadith Hadith is the Arabic word for a 'report' or an 'account f an event and refers to the Islamic oral tradition of anecdotes containing the purported words, actions, and the silent approvals of the Islamic prophet Muhammad or his immediate circle ...
scholar. There is a small cellar underneath the tomb, speculated to be a place where the ascetic-inclined Khatunabadi secluded himself and meditated.


Mausoleum of Mir Fendereski

The burial place of the famous mystic and scholar in the Safavid era, Mir Fendereski. His grave has a stone tombstone, which bears the date 1640, the year he died. Next to the grave, a
ghazal ''Ghazal'' is a form of amatory poem or ode, originating in Arabic poetry that often deals with topics of spiritual and romantic love. It may be understood as a poetic expression of both the pain of loss, or separation from the beloved, and t ...
of the poet Hafez, in the
Nastaliq ''Nastaliq'' (; ; ), also Romanization of Persian, romanized as ''Nastaʿlīq'' or ''Nastaleeq'' (), is one of the main book hand, calligraphic hands used to write Arabic script and is used for some Indo-Iranian languages, predominantly Persi ...
script, made with stucco, by Mir Emad Hassani, is visible on the wall of the place.


Mausoleum of Agha Hossein Khansari

Agha Hossein Khansari was a very influential scientist and scholar in the
court A court is an institution, often a government entity, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between Party (law), parties and Administration of justice, administer justice in Civil law (common law), civil, Criminal law, criminal, an ...
of the Safavid ruler Suleiman I. His mausoleum is topped with a single
cupola In architecture, a cupola () is a relatively small, usually dome-like structure on top of a building often crowning a larger roof or dome. Cupolas often serve as a roof lantern to admit light and air or as a lookout. The word derives, via Ital ...
dome, and it is the only mausoleum in the cemetery which was built for a scientist or engineer.


Roknolmolk Mosque

It was formerly known as the Aksa Mosque. The mosque was built in the Qajar era, and is at the edge of the Takht-e Foulad cemetery. The mosque has a room that contains the graves of both Roknolmolk and his wife, located near to the entrance, as well as a mausoleum for clerics of the Kalbasi family.


Mohammad Jafar Abadei Tekyeh

Established by the Qajar viceroy, Roknolmolk, named for the Shi'ite scholar, Mohammad Ja'far Abadei. It is adjacent to the Roknolmolk Mosque.


Golestan-e Shohada Cemetery

This smaller sub-cemetery is attached to the cemetery of Takht-e Foulad. The cemetery is where several martyrs are buried, hence the name Shohada, is a Persianised form of the word Shuhada which means Martyr in Arabic. One of the first burials in the cemetery is that of Abolhassan Shamsabadi. Those killed in the Haft-e Tir Bombing of 1981, and those who lost their lives during the
Iranian Revolution The Iranian Revolution (, ), also known as the 1979 Revolution, or the Islamic Revolution of 1979 (, ) was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. The revolution led to the replacement of the Impe ...
are buried here as well. Within the cemetery, there is also a cenotaph attributed as a grave to the Biblical prophet
Joshua Joshua ( ), also known as Yehoshua ( ''Yəhōšuaʿ'', Tiberian Hebrew, Tiberian: ''Yŏhōšuaʿ,'' Literal translation, lit. 'Yahweh is salvation'), Jehoshua, or Josue, functioned as Moses' assistant in the books of Book of Exodus, Exodus and ...
however there is no evidence that he is buried there.


Gallery

Baba Rukn al-Din Mausoleum2021 2.jpg, Mausoleum of Baba Rokneddin Khatoon Abadi Mausoleum, Takht-e Foulad- تکیه خاتون‌آبادی ، تخت فولاد اصفهان.jpg, The mausoleum and takyeh housing the remains of the Khatunabadi family Agha Hossein Khansari Mausoleum, Takht-e Foulad تکیه آقا حسین خوانساری، تخت فولاد اصفهان-.jpg, Mausoleum of Agha Hossein Khansari تخت فولاد63.jpg, Roknolmolk Mosque تخت فولاد56.jpg, Tomb of Roknolmolk inside the mosque Golestan-e Shohada Cemetery of Isfahan 13990219000229637245384202585026 14562 PhotoT.jpg, Entrance to the Golestan-e Shohada Cemetery


See also

* List of historical structures in Isfahan * List of mausoleums in Iran


References


External links

{{Mausoleums in Iran 10th-century establishments in Asia Buildings and structures in Isfahan Buildings and structures on the Iran National Heritage List Cemeteries established in the 10th century Cemeteries in Iran Mausoleums in Iran Safavid architecture in Iran Tourist attractions in Isfahan Takht-e Foulad