Most impressive palaces in Iran

The following couplet by Hakim Omar Khayyam Nishapuri reads,
The palace leaning on the wheel of fortune
Which the kings turned to
Saw a cuckoo sitting on its arch
Tweeting where on earth are they now?!
A glimpse at Iran's history and the remains of the past shows that a few have survived out of thousands of magnificent and splendid palaces and pavilions the kings and rulers made for themselves. They are mainly those which are close to our time and the rest are entirely destroyed or half-destroyed.
For the designers and engineers who built them using their arts and skills it's another story.
The buildings were constructed by a huge money taking advantage of the superior designers and artists of the age and therefore they are now considered the best examples of the Persian architecture and among the greatest wealth and tourism attractions across the country.
This time some of the oldest , largest and most important and beautiful palaces of Iran's history from the Alchaemenid era to the end of Ghajar period are addressed here. Of 15 palaces discussed here 7 palaces(or collections of palaces) have joined the world cu.turalheritage and it indicates the historical, artistic, expertise and experience behind them.
Marv Dasht, Takht-eJamshid or Persepolis
Persepolis served as the majestic and ceremonial capital for the kings of the Alchaemenid era.
It is so world- famous it needs no promotion at all. The building , whose remains extend in an area of 125,000 square meters ,started in the time of the third king of the dynasty, Darius I, and construction of different parts of it lasted for almost 200 years until the end of the era.
It was the ceremonial palace of the Alchaemenid and especially in Newruz the kings of the dynasty received the representatives of their submissive nations and got their presents. It includes several buildings like nations gate, Apadana, 100-pillar palace, Hadish, Tachar, 3-pillar palace, Haramsara and Khazaneh ( treasury).
But it's not clear what their main functions were. They are now labeled as J, Ch, and D palaces.
Isfahan, Ali Ghapu
Located on Naghseh-e Jahan square in Isfahan, it was the administration headquarters of the Safavid when Shah Abbas and his successors ruled and was a place to receive foreign guests. The 6-storey building built with materials such as wood, bricks, plaster and limestones was then considered an architectural masterpiece. It was a high-rise building at the time.
Shah Abbas changed the old gate of the shrine of Hazrat Ali PBUH and brought the old one to Isfahan and put it at the entrance door of the palace of Ali Ghapu. And perhaps that's the reason for its name, Ali Ghapu means Ali's gate. Later on it developed into Aali Ghapu, or the perfect gate.
The most beautiful part of the palace is the music hall with its beautiful and exquisite plaster decorations. The music played inside it reflects beautifully with an awesome echo. Some researchers believe that its famous Ivan was added several years after its construction.
Pasargad, Cyrus palaces
It is the place where Cyrus beat the last king of the Medes in a critical battle and founded the Alchaemenid empire. He selected it as his own capital and built his palaces there.
Pasargad means the Parsian's camp.
Now there are the remains of the two palaces of the Cyrus era which have been listed as the world cultural heritage along with the objects inside. The first is Baar-e Aam, or a place where the public is permitted to enter, which encompasses an area of about 2,500 square meters served as a place for Cyrus to meet with different nationalities officials who were ruled by the kingdom.
The other is the palace devoted to Cyrus for resting. It is almost 1,300 m away from his tomb. The series of palaces have suffered a lot over the time but the main reason behind their destruction is that in the 7th century AH a mosque and caravansary were built using their stone materials.
Susa, Darius Apadana
The palace of Apadana in Susa was the winter house for the Alchaememid.
The empire of Alchaemenid, 6th to 3rd centuries BC, had 3 capitals in Persepolis, Susa, and Hegmataneh. The city of Susa was used as the winter house of the dynasty's kings and the huge royal palaces were built there.
One was known as Apadana, extending an area of over 10,000 square meters, contains more than 110 explored architectural spaces.
Built in late 6th century BC at the time of Darius I, it bears resemblance to the buildings made by Darius in Persepolis with respect to its style of architecture.
Apadana in Susa was explored out of the ground in the reign of Nasereddin Shah from the Ghajar by a French couple named Marcel Dieulafoy and Jane Dieulafoy and many of its remains like the great stone capital of the column resembling a cow's head and adobe tiles with reliefs of the Immortal Guard soldiers were transferred to the Louvre museum in Paris.
Firuz Abad in Fars, Ardeshir's palace
The palace of Ardeshir is one of the main research resources on the architecture in the Sassanid era and reflects its huge impact on Iran's architecture.
Ardeshir Babakan , the founder of the Sassanid administration, recognised Zoroastrianism as Iran's official religion. He erected a large palace in his throne place in the city of Gur , today's Firuz Abad, in the province of Fars. Encompassing an area of over 9,000 square meters, it had a significant effect on the architecture in the future.
In fact the palace is a main research spot on Iran's architecture in the Islamic era. The major part of it includes 3 large domed halls, which make up Baar-e Aaam hall with the upper dome, considered very significant in the architectural techniques 1,800 years ago.
Two other parts had official and residential functions. The huge Ivan of the palace, 28 m long, 14 m wide and 18 m high, is the first example which developed to its greatest shape in Madaen Ivan.
Ctesiphon, Kasra arch
It belongs to the Iranian kings in the Sassanid era.
The ancient palace of Kasra arch or Madaen Ivan , now located in the territory of Iraq, is so important in Iran's history and architecture that it has been mentioned in the Persian literature.
The capital of Iran lied on the bank of Tigris river for a long period in the Sassanid era.
It contained a series of 7 townships which the Arab called Madaen, the plural of Medina.
Royal ceremonies were held in there. Located in the town of Asbanbar, it was perhaps built in the time of Khosrow I, Anushirvan. What amazed the eyes of the viewers was the glamour of its arched Ivan which was indeed a full-scale architectural masterpiece at the time. It inspired Iran's architecture to a great deal and the new era buildings such as the entrance of the national museum of Iran, built by Andre Goddard, and the lower arch of Azadi( freedom) tower by Hussein Aman were inspired by it.
Unfortunately, in 1888 AD parts of the palace collapsed and now it needs basic renovation. Around Kasra arch, there are the remains of other palaces from the Sassanid era. The tomb of Salman Farsi, the prophet Muhammad's companion, stands nearby.
Ghazvin, Chehel South palace
The monument of Chehel Sotun, 40 pillars, known as the pavilion is housed in the city of Ghazvin.
The Safavid came into power long after Islam and their reigns lasted for 227 years. Their first capital was placed in Tehran and then was moved onto Ghazvin and ultimately Isfahan was their capital.
One of the historic sites in Ghazvin, which dates back to the time when Shah Tahmasp I of the Safavid ruled, is the palace of Chehel Sotun.
It is the only remains of the royal citadel in the era which has luckily survived. It's several decades older than the palace of Chehel Sotun in Isfahan and equally its architecture and decorations have been damaged to a more noticeable degree.
The monument in the middle of a sizeable garden was restored by Saed Alsaltaneh, Ghazvin's governor, in the Ghajar period and was then used as the center of the governance. But it lost this function in the Pahlavi era and it has now turned into a calligraphy museum.
Sarvestan in Fars, palace of Bahram Gur
The palace of Sarvestan, with an area of 1,600 square meters, contains 2 Ivans and a central hall.
Although the city of Sarvestan in Fars province is now a small and quiet place, it used to be one of the major cities in the south during the Sassanid era. Surprisingly, it's known to be one of the palaces which is damaged the least.
It is not clear when exactly it was built in the 400 years of the Sassanid era but some historical resources attribute it to Bahram IV, known as Bahram Gur. Since it is a rather small palace some researchers have assumed that it was perhaps temporarily used for hunting by the king(s) of the Sassanid.
The palace is built with rubble stones and mortar, in an area of 1,600 square meters, and contains two Ivans and a central hall with a large dome. The skill and elegance used in the construction of arches and vaults have properly given it the name of "arch palace".
Bishapuer in Fars, Shapur and Ualryan's palace
The palace is located 25 km west of Kazerun on the road to Bushehr.
The remains of the city of Bishapur, almost 1,800 years old, are seen in the area. It was chosen as the capital for the Sassanid emperors and retained its importance even after transferring the capital into Ctesiphon, in today's Iraq.
One of the sites in the ancient city is Shahpur I palace which influenced Iran's architecture and its 4-Ivan style inspired many mosques, schools, and caravansaries which took advantage of the style.
Nearby, there is the mosaic Ivan whose mosaics with motifs of human, birds, flowers and bushes are now housed in Louvre museum in Paris and Iran's national museum.
When Shapur I was the king a large battle took place between Iran and the Roman which resulted in his victory and Ualryan, the Roman emperor, was captured.
He was kind enough not to put the emperor into jail; rather he took advantage of Ualryan's skills in architecture and built him a a palace, 3,000 square metres, in Bishapur and let the lucky and respectable captive live in there.
Throne of Solomon, Khosrow Ivan
Khosrow Ivan is an important part of the collection of throne of Solomon.
In the Sassanid era when Iran's official religion was Zoroastrian there were 3 large fire temples in 3 places: Azar Barzin Mehr in Khorasan which was used by farmers, Azar Faranbagh in Fars, devoted to Zoroastrian priests and Azar Gashsp in Azerbaijan which made fire for the kings and warriors.
The third one is actually Takht-e Soleiman, throne of Solomon, a district in the city of Takab in West Azerbaijan province, which has joined the world's cultural heritage list thanks to its amazing architecture and enchanting natural manifestations. Khosrow Ivan, a part in Takht-e Soleiman is damaged to some extent but it is considered the largest building in Takht-e Soleiman.
It's in fact a part of the palace of Khosrow II Parviz, or perhaps Khosrow I, Anushirvan, which has undergone huge damage as a result of human factors, especially the attacks of the enemies, and geographical factors such as the prolonged cold and frost and consecutive earthquakes.
It measures 12 m wide, 18.5 m high and 27 m deep. It indicates how advanced the architecture was in the era. Beside the Ivan lie a couple of other buildings and halls dating from the Sassanid era. They functioned either as a reception and resting place or they offered royal services. Actualy, they are not part of the fire temple of Azar Gashsp.
Tehran, Golestan palace
The palace of Golestan consists of a series of palaces and pavilions built in different periods.
The first core of the palace started in the reign of Shah Abbas of the Safavid through building Chahar Bagh and later on Karim Khan of the Zand added Divan Khane and Khalvat Khane.
when Tehran was selected as the capital by Mohammad Khan from Ghajar , it was used as the place for the kings to rule. It retained this usage till the end of the era. It is made up of the palaces built in the reigns of the kings like Fathali Shah and Nader Shah and display a combination of Iran's architecture along with European architecture in the 17th and 18th centuries.
Nowadays the historical documents and objects as well as exquisite art works are kept in the palace. Among them are many of the letters and mails from the Ghajar period, tens of paintings of the greatest Persian and European artists in the 19th and 20th centuries, furniture, carpets, decorative objects and other things used by the kings, as well as precious gifts presented by the heads of other countries like Napoleon Bonaparte, Queen Victoria and Russian Caesars.
Isfahan, Hasht Behesht
The palace of Hasht Behesht, 8 heavens, remains from Shah Soleiman of the Safavid and was built about 450 years ago on the edge of Chahar Bagh in Isfahan. It is said that the two-storey octagonal palace housed 8 favorite women of the king Shah Soleiman.
European tourists who have visited it adore its charming and exquisite decorations.
It was damaged hugely in the Ghajar era but it is being currently. Also an extensive garden encompassing the palace has been destroyed and now it is replaced with a large park.
Shiraz, pavilion
The octagonal pavilion is built inspired by Hasht Behesht, 8 heavens, monument in Isfahan.
The pavilion in Shiraz is not as splendid and impressive as the palaces of the Safavid or even the Ghajar but it in fact reflects the tribal spirit and the popularity of its owner, Karim Khan Zand.
The historic landmark housed in a rather small garden in the center of the city of Shiraz is the remains of a yet larger garden named Nazar garden which was the center of Shiraz administration in the time of Zand.
Karim Khan visited the ambassadors from abroad in the pavilion and used it for his receptions. Even after his death his corpse was buried there but the revengeful Agha Muhammad Khan Ghajar exhumed his grave and buried his bones under the staircase of the Golestan palace in Tehran right after he came to power. Now it houses Pars museum and the various historical and artistic relics, like those of the Zand are put into show there.
Kalat Naderi , Khorshid palace
Khorshid( sun) palace was built in Kalat Naderi at the order of Nader Shah and served as a resting place and a treasury for storing jewelry and loot.
Nader Shah was one of the great warriors of Iran and world famous figures in victories.
He managed to dominate India and brought the loot to the country. Because of his tribal spirit and his interest in victories he didn't possess a definite and stable capital and left monuments in different cities the most famous of which is Khorshid palace, located in the small town of Kalat Naderi168 km northeast of Mashhad.
What makes the palace distinct among other historic landmarks is its cylinder-shaped dome which contains 66 stone half-columns. It is said that it was the house of Nader and the inscription adorned with Sura Naba on the dome meant it was supposed to be his eternal house.
This worldly or eternal house overlooks a delightful garden. In its large cellars royal jewelry and prisoners were kept. It was built with the help of the Indian artists Nader had brought to Iran and you can witness its exterior stone decorations in fully Indian styles.
Isfahan, Chehel Sotun palace
The palace of Chehel Sotun, in an area of over 67,000 square meters, started when Shah Abbas I ruled.
It was built after he transferred the capital from Ghazvin to Isfahan. Then Shah Abbas II developed it to receive foreign guests. In the reign of Shah Sultan Hussein, the last king of the dynasty of Safavid, it underwent a blast and was damaged to a great extent. After the collapse of the Safavid it still wasn't in good condition.
It's most famous for its paintings on the walls by the greatest artists of the Safavid age like Reza Abbasi, Muhammad Yusuf, Mohammad Ghasem, Moin Mosavver, Afzal Alhusseini.
Many of them were replaced by less significant works in the Ghajar era but with the uninterrupted endeavors in the last 70 years the former paintings were pulled out of plaster and restored. Some of the great works of arts from the Ghajar like Chaldoran, the battle between Shah Ismail and the Ottoman, and Karnal combat, conquering India by Nader Shah have adorned the palace.