The best sights of Shiraz: the pink mosque Nasir ol-Molk and the mirror Shah-Cherakh

The Nasir al-Mulk Mosque is one of the oldest mosques in Shiraz, located in the Good Arban area in the southern part of Lutfali Khan Zand Street, which is located near the Imam Zadeh Shah Cherag Mosque.
This building was built by the order of Mirza Hasan Alikhan, known as Nasir al-Mulk, who was an aristocrat and respected man of Shiraz. The architect of the mosque was Mohammad Hassan. The construction period took 12 years, the construction of the mosque lasted from 1255 to 1267 according to the solar calendar.
The mosque has a wide courtyard located in the northern part of the mosque. Above the entrance to the mosque is a large arch, the ceiling of which is decorated with colorful mosaics. The entrance gate consists of two massive large wooden doors, in the upper part of which a poem by the poet Shuride Shirazi is carved on marble on the occasion of the builder of the mosque and the year the construction was completed. The mosque has two seraglios - east and west.

The western seraglio is covered with brick, it has had the most work and is more beautiful. The vaults of this seraglio rest on stone columns, columns with a pattern in the form of a spiral are arranged in two rows of six pieces, that is, 12 columns symbolizing 12 imams. In addition, this seraglio has seven openings connecting the western seraglio with the inner courtyard of the mosque, each opening has a wooden door with multi-colored stained glass windows. For stone processing and decoration of this seraglio, the architects drew inspiration from the Vakil Shiraz mosque. The vaults and walls of this seraglio are decorated with beautiful mosaics. The floor is covered with turquoise mosaics, and the ceiling is painted with flowers, flower buds and has sayings from the Koran. In fact, this seraglio is considered summer.

The beauty of the eastern seraglio cannot be compared with the beauty of the western seraglio, it is considered a winter seraglio. It contains seven undecorated columns standing in the middle in one row. In front of the eastern seraglio there is a hall, which is separated from the courtyard by eight vaults.

This seraglio has a door that opens the way to a well of water. Also in this place there is a shallow pool and one hall. Both seraglios, in contrast to the accepted practice, due to the orientation of the building towards the Qibla (the direction towards Mecca, where Muslims pray), are also located along the axis towards the Qibla. In the northern hall there are inscriptions in the form of a ligature laid out of stone, with a poem by the poet Saadi:
I don't see this life eternal
The main thing is the mosaic that we leave behind
If the master of the heart ever wishes by his grace
Then he will offer a prayer to his teachers

The mosque has two halls - northern and southern, which are not similar to each other, the northern hall is more beautiful than the southern one. On three sides of the northern hall there are three half-arches, the fourth side of the hall leads to the courtyard of the mosque. In addition, this hall has 4 pavilions, the ceiling between which is made in the form of five domes. The southern hall has two internal towers, in the courtyard of this hall there is a shallow rectangular pool, in the middle of which there is a stone base from which a fountain flows. The ceiling of the hall has five domes.

In the northern part of the mosque there is an arch called the pearl arch, the ceiling inside and outside of which is decorated with multi-colored mosaics with inscriptions from the Koran. On both sides of this arch are two small vaults. In the southern part there is also a vault, its height is less than the height of the pearl arch, but the entire inner and outer surface, including the ceiling, is also decorated with mosaics like the northern arch. There are two inner towers on them, the entrance doors of these two towers are two small vaults on two sides of the main arch.

Mosque Nasir al-Mulk (Iran)

I don't know about you, but I've always been interested in visiting a mosque. Unfortunately, I looked at how many of them, but only from the street, they didn’t want to let them go further than the gate. And yet I managed to visit one mosque. Of course, this is far from a famous mosque, although it has existed for a long time. I went and looked inside. But now it will not be about her, but about the Nasir al-Mulk mosque in Shiraz, Iran. While looking at the photo, I admired the stained-glass windows of the mosque, but I imagine how beautiful it is in reality. But since such an opportunity (I don’t know about you) is not provided, I will only look at the photo. I invite you to join me...

The Nasir al-Mulk Mosque ((Nasir al-Mulk) - is located in the city of Shiraz, in Iran. Because of the magnificent mosaics that adorn all its walls, Nasir al-Mulk is recognized as one of the most beautiful mosques in the country. It was built in 1888, commissioned by one of the Shiraz aristocrats, representatives of the Qajar dynasty and named after him.

During the construction process, pieces of colored glass and various mosaics were widely used for wall cladding, which brought the mosque the glory of the most beautiful building in Shiraz. Nasir al-Mulk Mosque is a very beautiful place. It is richly decorated with multi-colored patterns and magnificent ornaments both inside and out. The walls, the ceiling and the floor are covered with mosaics. And the windows are stained glass windows, which creates fabulous lighting inside. Both the beauty and the history of the mosque attract thousands of tourists. And, if you have already chosen a different distance, then by going to the site: vpolet.yana.kiev.ua, here you can order an air ticket online. Hurry up while the special offers of the airlines are valid. And do not forget that with vpolet , you will always be fast and on time in the place where you are going. Contact.

Address: Fars Province, Shiraz, Lotf Ali Khan Zand Street, Iran
Telephone: +98 71 3224 1661
Confession: Islam
Opening: 1888
Architectural style: Persian architecture
Architects: Muhammad Reza Kashi Paz-e-Shirazi, Muhammad Hasan-e-Mema

Each city is interesting and unusual in its own way. Old ones play a big role in its architectural appearance - despite the general similarity, they are all very different. One of the most visited mosques of the city in Iran is Nasir al-Mulk. Foreigners are attracted here by the enchanting beauty of the interior, which cannot be found anywhere else in the Muslim world. Let's find out what makes this place so attractive.

Mosque name

Nasir al-Mulk is often referred to as the Pink Mosque. The fact is that in the design of the building (both external and internal) there is a pink color. There is quite a lot of it here, and given that this shade is not at all characteristic of a Muslim mosque, the Nasir al-Mulk mosque appears in the form of a structure that is completely unique to Iran. In many ways, it also symbolizes the city of Shiraz itself, which itself is considered the "city of roses."

Story

The Nasir al-Mulk Mosque (Nasir ol-Molk, Nasir-ol-Molk Mosque) was built at the end of the 19th century, in 1888. The "customer" of the construction was the representative of the Qajar dynasty Mirza Hasan Ali Nasir al-Mulk, whose name the mosque received. Construction lasted 12 years.

After Iran became an Islamic republic - this happened in 1979 - the country's authorities revised the status of the mosque. They considered it too atypical for the true culture of Islam (mostly "thanks" to the abundance of bright colors in the interior) and transferred the mosque to the category. Despite this, parishioners still pray here. Tourists are also allowed to enter here so that they can enjoy the extraordinary beauty.

Nowadays, the building periodically undergoes "maintenance". Instead of an extensive renovation, it is being gradually updated without deviating from the original architectural style, thanks to which the building still retains its status as a historical heritage of Iran. These works are sponsored by the Nasir al-Mulk Foundation.

The style in which the building of the mosque was erected is the so-called Shiraz direction of Islamic architecture. The courtyard is a large area (2890 sq. m.) where there is a pool for water - in Iran they are called the word "khouz".

Among the important elements of Nasir al-Mulk's architecture are:

Pearl Arch, painted with verses from the Koran - it can be seen in the northern part of the courtyard;
two high minarets - in the south;
the main prayer hall - in the western;
nave, decorated with stone columns (there are 7 of them) - on the east side.

As for the color design, tiles were used in seven colors at once: yellow, terracotta, white, red, blue, black and blue. It is this selection of shades that is characteristic of Shiraz architecture. The project of the unique mosque was developed by the architects Mohammad Reza Kashi Paze Shirazi and Mirza Mohammad Hossein-Memar.

Interior

No matter how beautiful the exterior of the Nasir al-Mulk Mosque, its interior decoration still leaves a much deeper impression. The main thing that the visitor pays attention to is the magnificent stained-glass windows in wooden frames. All of them are different from each other, and different patterns are applied to the glass of each: floral ornaments and geometric motifs, figures, as if folded in a kaleidoscope, etc.

They are united only by the selection of colors: both warm and cold shades are used in each stained-glass window. This made it possible to achieve a stunning effect of "depth of space". And since the windows face east, at dawn, when believers perform their first prayer, the floor of the prayer hall is flooded with stunning color paintings. Thanks to this, the mosque received another name - it is called "rainbow".

Features of the visit

Visiting Nasir al-Mulk in the morning, you can see the most impressive picture. During the day and in the evening, the sun is already shining directly through the stained-glass windows, so the halls will look completely different. By the way, if in summer multi-colored lights are also reflected from the glazed tiles that cover the floor, then in winter it is covered with Shiraz carpets, and the view will also be completely different.

How to get there?

The mosque is located in the historical quarter of Gaud-i-Aranan, along Lotf Ali Shah Street. A visit can be combined with the famous Shiraz, which is located nearby.

The best sights of Shiraz: Shah Cherakh mirror mausoleum in Shiraz (aka Shah Cherakh mirror mosque or Shah Sherakh, Shah Cheragh); pink mosque in Shiraz Nasir ol-Molk

While preparing for a trip to Iran, when I was scouring the Internet in search of the best sights in Persia, I was most impressed with the riot of colors of Nasir ol-Molk, the pink mosque in Iran and the emerald mirror Shah Cherakh mosque in Shiraz. Perhaps these are the sights of Iran that I wanted to see the most.

Since an excursion was waiting for us that day, early in the morning I set myself two tasks: to be in time and in pink mosque Nasir ol-Molk, And to the mirror mosque in Shiraz - Shah Cherakh(Strictly speaking, Shah-Cherakh is a mirror mausoleum, not a mosque). In addition, I read that Nazir ol-Molk must certainly be seen in the morning, immediately after its opening: firstly, because at that time there is an ideal light that fills the entire mosque with bright colors, and secondly, because at this time there are still almost no tourists. Later, organized groups are brought there by buses, and it is already difficult to take a decent picture.

I asked my guide, Alireza, the day before, how much a taxi costs from the hotel to Nasir al-Mulk, so as not to waste time looking for a road. He replied that it was nearby, so no more than twenty thousand rials - about 0.5 euros. In the morning I asked the reception to call me a taxi, believing that it was less likely that the taxi driver would try to put shoes on me.

Where there! A cheerful grandfather drove up. Let me sell a two million voyage to Persepolis in his company. No, I say, thank you humbly, I have already paid for everything. But he did not lose heart, continuing to convince me in very basic English that I was losing a lot by refusing his extremely inexpensive services. I note that for (+ Nakshe-Rustam and Pasargada) and back by taxi, an adequate price is (in 2014-2016) 1,200,000 rials - about 30 euros.

We arrived at Nasir al-Mulk at the beginning of the eighth. Oops… The hut on the stick, still closed, almost half an hour before opening (the opening hours of the Nasir al-Mulk mosque are from 7:30 to 12:00 and from 15:00 to 18:30, as it turned out). In general, English-language sources write that it is not worth focusing on the exact opening time of Nasir al-Mulk - it opens when the usher arrives. And the Iranians in terms of punctuality are not directly Germans at all.

The inconspicuous entrance to the wonderful mosque Nasir ol Molk

Ok, we moved to the Shah-Cherakh mausoleum. This is also nearby, we drove for about 5 minutes. We arrived, I get 500,000 rials, there is nothing smaller. Drove big eyes made - no change. Well, no - let's go look. The shops are still a little open, we traveled longer than we drove from Nasir al-Mulk. The taxi driver, seeing five hundred, with a vengeance began to promote his services for a trip to Persepolis, even moderated his appetite to 1,700,000. We returned to Shah-Cherakh.

- How many? I ask.

The one on my blue eye:

- How much?!! I traveled 10 times more for this money in Tehran!

- So I had to take you everywhere to change money!

“Darling, it’s not my problem that you don’t carry change with you. I know that the fair price of a taxi to Nasir ol-Molk is 20,000 rials from my hotel. The same number from Nasir ol Molk to Shah Cherakh. Here's 80,000 for you, and remember my boundless kindness!

The emphasis in lamentations has shifted to the fact that “the hares are sitting at home hungry”, and my handouts are humiliating for him, he will not take 80,000 from me!

“If you don’t take it, I won’t insist, thank you for giving me a lift, good man.”

Taxi driver give me something excited to tell about the police with a roll of his eyes.

- Well, there is one policeman. Let's go, I'll ask him about the price ??

I put him 80,000 on the seat and went to myself, not paying attention to the tongue twister rushing after him. Later I clarified with Alireza - it was still generous of me.

Our skirmish was watched with interest by two guys. When I passed by, they asked me to take a picture of them. For some reason, Iranians are very attracted to the opportunity to capture themselves in the camera of some foreigner. Purely out of love for art. Money, unlike Ethiopia, no one asks for it.

“Bro, cleanly take a picture of us from the lands!”

I read that non-Muslims are allowed into Shah-Cherakh and may not be allowed in. They say that non-Muslims are guaranteed to visit Shah Cherakh on Mondays - on this day they accept alms. I was on Wednesday. And at the gate to the territory of the mausoleum, the guards stopped me. But only then, in order to send the camera and backpack to the storage room - it is about a hundred meters to the right of the entrance, you will not immediately notice. And when I passed it, it passed without problems.

The people are pulling up for prayer in Shah-Cherakh (entrance through the gate to the right of the center of the photo)

The mausoleum of Shah-Cherakh (Shah-Sherakh) is the tomb of Ahmed and Muhammad, the sons of Imam al-Kazim (Musa ibn Jafar al-Kurashi), the seventh of, and the brothers of Imam Ali Al-Reza, the eighth of the twelve imams. In general, the sons of Imam al-Kazim, as was customary at that time (the second half of the 8th century), had much more - 18 (plus 23 more daughters).

Mausoleum of Shah Sherakh and the gate to it. The square is empty - everything is inside, at prayer.

Shah-Cherakh means "Lord of Light" in Farsi. You might think that the name comes from the dazzling mirrored interior of the mausoleum. In fact, on the contrary, the shining decoration of the mirror mosque in Shiraz reflects the essence of the Shiite saints resting there. The history of the name of the Shah-Cherakh mausoleum is as follows. Ayatollah Dastgaib once saw a radiance in the night in the distance. Ayatollah went to find out the nature of the mysterious glow and found a tombstone, from under which light broke through. The grave was dug up, and a body in combat attire was removed from it, on the finger of which a ring was found with an engraving "Pride belongs to Allah, Ahmed, son of Musa." According to this ring, the deceased was identified - the son of Imam al-Kazim (Musa ibn Jafar al-Kurashi). Perhaps he himself died - it is not known for sure. But it is alleged that he was killed by the ruling Sunni dynasty. Of the twelve imams, none of them died by their own death, as is believed. And if he died for his faith, and even a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad, then the status of a saint is inevitable. Shah Cherakh as a place of pilgrimage is extremely popular with Shiites today.

Here you can see how large the area in front of the Shah-Cherakh mausoleum is. And the man on the left in the photo made a remark - “no foto!”

And I showed up just at the time of the morning prayer. At first I thought to wait it out, sat down by the fountain in the courtyard of the mausoleum, clicked quietly on the photo on the phone. But I didn’t have much time to wait, I still had to make it to Nasir al-Mulk.

At the entrance, the attendants searched me again, but they let me through unhindered. Men enter Shah-Sherakh through wooden doors decorated with silver plates on the left side of the facade, women enter the right. Women can also rent hijabs there. When for thanks, and when 20,000 rials will be asked to unfasten.

The main entrance to Shah-Cherakh. Women's entrance to the right, men's to the left.

Prayer is in full swing, there are a lot of people, it’s awkward to walk between them, all the more so to shoot. But the interior is jaw dropping. Palace of the Wizard of the Emerald City. That mausoleum that I saw in the desert of Maranjab was brilliant. But Shah-Cherakh overshadows him, without options. Everything is filled with green radiance, glitters, shimmers, sparkles. Incredible.

Emerald interior of Shah-Cherakh (alas, not mine — @liveinternet.ru)

For the first time, a mausoleum was erected over the graves in the first half of the 12th century, with a dome and a colonnade on open verandas. But it became popular with pilgrims a couple of centuries later, in 1344-1349, when Shahin Tashi Khatun significantly restored and expanded Shah Sherakh, erecting a school building and her own tomb for the future around the wall. Tashi Khatun also presented the mosque with a luxurious thirty-volume Koran, written in gold by Arabic calligraphers. Today it is kept in the Fars Provincial Museum.

The Mirror Mosque was repeatedly seriously damaged by earthquakes, but was regularly repaired and updated (in 1506, 1588, 1827). Shah Sherakh acquired its present appearance after its reconstruction in 1958. Then its dome, characteristic of the architecture of Shiraz, cracked once again, was replaced with a metal copy, lighter and more durable. Today, the Shah Sherakh mausoleum includes an old veranda with a dozen wooden columns and a pair of short minarets along the edges, a large sanctuary hall with high niches along four walls, and a mosque in its western part, as well as various auxiliary rooms.

Facade of the mausoleum Shah-Cherakh, covered with blinds from the sun

On both sides of the building are beautiful massive gates.

Mausoleum of Shah-Cherakh and one of its gates, Shiraz.

The mausoleum itself is a tomb surrounded by a patterned metal fence, located between the space under the dome and the mosque. Actually, the specific emerald radiance of the mirrored interior is caused by green lamps, installed, in particular, on the fence of the tombstone.

Having enjoyed the spectacle as much as possible in the midst of prayer, I returned to the storage room and, roughly imagining the direction to Nasir al-Mulk, went straight through the courtyards - it should have been somewhere nearby. I wandered a little, pestered rare passers-by with the question, where is your pink mosque, Nasir ol Molk, dear? But somehow unsuccessfully - they did not know English, and my pronunciation "Nasir ol Molk", apparently, did not really resemble the original name. But found.

And again the entrance to the pink mosque Nasir al-Mulk

Grandma sells tickets at the entrance. Nobody in the courtyard. But here some disappointment awaited me - repairs were in full swing.

Walked around the yard, took pictures.

Pink mosque Nasir al-Mulk, Shiraz

Well, yes, the pink mosque. Unusual. Beautiful, yes.

But not so incomparably.

Went inside.

Corridor from the entrance to the mosque Nasir ol-Molk

And here it is, yeaaah…..!! I was covered with the second cultural-color shock in the morning.

Rainbow Mosque Nasir ol Molk

The whole room is simply flooded with the brightest colors. And besides me, there is almost no one inside - take pictures at your pleasure.

A riot of colors in the Nasir ol Molk mosque

So I broke away, photographing the coveted motley interior of the pink mosque!

Yes, what is there "pink"! Pink mosque Nasir ol Molk outside. And inside, she just plays with all the colors. In the English-speaking Internet, it is also called the Kaleidoscope Mosque, the Mosque of Colors and the Rainbow Mosque - all this suits her perfectly. But in a very short period of time - from about 7.30 to 8.30-9.00. Then the sun goes down and the colors fade. That is why most people know it as a pink mosque - by the color of its facade and interior. And he doesn’t even realize that he missed one of the most vivid impressions from traveling to Iran.

In general, the technology for the production of colored glass has been known in the East since the 8th century. The Arab alchemist Jabir ibn Hayyan described in his works 48 ways of making it and cutting it into artificial "precious stones".

There was also a funny story in the mosque. As I said, there were only a few people there besides me - one cutesy girl (I think Korean) and three more lively girlfriends (Vietnamese?). The cutesy girl was busy taking selfies. In the place where the light fell most effectively.

Here she is, mamzel, a colored spot on the left in the photo

She put the phone on a stool with a delay in shooting, moved away, took a languid pose. Came back, looked - apparently did not like it. Because it went on forever.

Ghost in the mosque

We all understand the desire of a person to make a spectacular shot in a beautiful place. But five minutes have passed. The Vietnamese unobtrusively moved closer to the girl with a hint that she was not alone here. Princess Ygnorit them.

The Vietnamese girls are still patiently waiting...

Another five minutes passed. The Vietnamese had already come up and directly asked her to have a conscience. Mamzel pursed her lips and did not notice them at point-blank range. Well, the Vietnamese girls are simple - there are three of them, it’s easier for them - they simply began to insolently photograph each other between the posing princess and her phone. Only in this way they squeezed out the shameless occupier from the territory of the public domain. For which we heartily thank them.

The Nasir al-Mulk Mosque was built, as might be expected, at the behest of Mirza Hassan Ali Nazir al-Mulk, one of the Qajar rulers of Shiraz. To this day, the mosque is maintained at the expense of a special fund founded by the al-Mulk family (for which many human thanks to them). The al-Mulk family left enough architectural monuments in the history of Shiraz. definitely worth a visit too. However, they did their best for themselves.

The Nasir ol-Molk mosque was built for 12 years and completed in 1888. This masterpiece was created by Iranian architects Hassan e-Memar and Mohammed Reza Kashi Paz-e-Shirazi. The building was designed not only beautiful, but also technologically advanced for its time. Thanks to the use of flexible wooden struts in the masonry, which act as shock absorbers, Nasir ol-Molk has never been destroyed by numerous earthquakes. Wooden insert bricks can be seen, in particular, in the columns of the iwan.

The vaults of the mosque are also beautifully decorated - the guys-tourists came from somewhere in Southeast Asia. One of them, having walked around the hall, simply lay down on the carpet, and for five minutes, spellbound, did not take his eyes off the pattern on the ceiling. But I got carried away by the play of light, and did not remove the dome - now I regret it.

Rainbow Mosque Nasir al Mulk

The architects did their best. The riot of colors in the sanctuary causes a powerful surge of feelings - delight, ecstasy, euphoria, reverence, which, of course, makes the believer feel the divine presence. Well, the unbeliever has endless admiration for the masters who created this miracle. And the beauty of the world.

I will tell everyone who is going to Shiraz - two sights of Shiraz - the Shah-Cherakh mirror mausoleum and the pink mosque ... no, the rainbow mosque, the mosque of colors Nasir ol-Molk - this is a must see in Shiraz - must-see objects! And in the first place - Nasir ol-Molk. And certainly in the early morning, from 7:30 to 8:30! I read that as early as 9:30, those who came were disappointed ... Although, it’s probably worth even going in a couple of times - in the morning, when everything is flooded with a rainbow, and a little later - when the ornament of arches and ceilings is better visible.

Pink Mosque in Shiraz, Nasir ol Molk

And I, having spent probably more than half an hour in the Mosque of Colors - I still couldn’t enjoy it - in a state of bliss I returned on foot to the hotel - it was only a quarter of an hour’s walk from Nasir ol-Molk. Alireza was already waiting for me there with ours, Nakshe-Rustam and Pasargada.

UPDATE: Crap. Just now I found out - in addition to Shah-Cherakh there is also in Shiraz m Ali's mosque-mausoleum Ibn Hamzeh (Imamzadeh-ye Ali Ebn-e Hamze). Very little different from Shah-Cherakh, smaller in size. But the main thing is that the entrance to it is hassle-free and photography is allowed! Keep in mind.

Photos from Shiraz can be viewed.

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Mosque Nasir al-Mulk (Iran)