Goharshad Mosque

Goharshad Mosque
مسجد گوهرشاد
The monumental maqsura iwan with the dome and minarets
Religion
Affiliation	Sunni Islam
Ecclesiastical or organizational status	Friday mosque
Status	Active
Location
Location	Mashhad, Razavi Khorasan Province
Country	Iran
Location of the mosque in Iran
Administration	Astan Quds Razavi
Geographic coordinates	36°17′15″N 59°36′53″E
Architecture
Architect(s)	Ghavameddin Shirazi
Type	Mosque architecture
Style	Timurid
Founder	Empress Goharshad
Groundbreaking	1418 CE
Completed	c. 1430 CE
Specifications
Dome(s)	One
Dome height (outer)	43 m (141 ft)
Dome dia. (outer)	15 m (49 ft)
Minaret(s)	Two
Minaret height	43 m (141 ft)
Site area	10,000 m2 (110,000 sq ft)
Materials	Bricks; plaster; concrete; ceramic tiles; mosaics; marble

The Goharshad Mosque (Persian: مسجد گوهرشاد, romanized: Masjid-i Gawhar Shad; Arabic: مسجد كوهرشاد) is a grand Sunni Friday mosque (jāmeh) that is part of the Imam Reza Shrine complex, located in Mashhad, in the province of Razavi Khorasan, Iran. Construction of the mosque commenced in 1418 CE, during the Timurid era, and was completed in c. 1430 CE.

History

It was built by the order of Empress Goharshad, the wife of Shah Rukh of the Timurid dynasty, and work commenced in 1418 CE, as part of her extensive renovation program for the shrine of Imam Riza.

The double-layered dome of the mosque was severely damaged in 1911 in bombings by troops of the Russian Empire. In the 1960s, the dome of Goharshad mosque was deemed to be in severe structural danger, damages caused by various earthquakes over time, the 1911 Russian bombings, and the attack on the mosque by Reza Shah during the 1935 rebellion required the dome to be rebuilt. By the order of Mohammad Reza Shah, the tiles from the ancient dome were removed in the 1960s and the external shell was dismantled. A new external shell was built and the dome was re-tiled. While such repairs were necessary, they permanently altered the historic identity of the mosque.

Architecture

Located to the south of the mausoleum, accessed through the dar al-siyadah, the mosque is of the familiar four-iwan courtyard form. The depths of the iwans are irregular, a response to the location of existing buildings within which it was inserted. Covering an area of approximately 10,000 square metres (110,000 sq ft), the mosque consists of a large azure dome, two 43-metre-high (141 ft) minarets, four verandas, a sahn with seven big bed-chambers, and a large altar made of a stony dado and mosaic faience shell. The two round minarets rise from the ground and flank the southern iwan, and was an innovation in Persian architecture as minarets in Iran were previously positioned above the parapet. A blue faience dome was rebuilt with poured concrete in the 1960's, above the southern iwan. The convex part of the dome’s shell is decorated with an inscription in the Kufic script.

The complete surface of the minarets, walls, and the surrounding colonnades are decorated with fine mosaic and glazed tiles produced in a variety of colors including ultramarine, turquoise, white, clear green, yellow, light yellow, and ebony. The mosque is known for its tile mosaic decoration, an art form that peaked during the Timurid period. On a high base of marble revetment, panels of enamel brick and tilework are arranged in two stories that run around the sahn, capped by a band of calligraphy designed by Baysunghur, a son of Gawhar Shad. Vivid, energetic floral patterns in tile and geometric schemes in brick are used in alternation, emphasizing the strong rhythm around the sahn.

In 1965 a scholar of Persian architecture described the beautiful mosque as the first, and the greatest surviving, Persian monument of the fifteenth century:

Its portal continues the Samarkand style of arch within arch, enriched by a succession of bevels and reveals that give it depth and power. The thick, tower-like minarets, merging with the outer corners of the portal screen, extend to the ground and, together with the high foundation revetment of marble, give the ensemble the impression of solidity necessary to support its exuberant color. The entire court façade is faced with enamel brick and mosaic faience of the finest quality…

— Arthur Pope, Persian Architecture: The Triumph of Form and Color.

Gallery

• 
• 
• 
• 

See also

• Islam in Iran
• List of mosques in Iran
• Greater Khorasan
• Ali ar-Ridha
• Goharshad Mosque rebellion

Further reading

• Blair, Sheila S.; Bloom, Jonathan M. Bloom (1994). The Art and Architecture of Islam. New Haven: Yale University Press.
• Byron, Robert (1977). "Timurid Architecture". In Pope, Arthur Upham; Ackerman, Phyllis (assistant) (eds.). A Survey of Persian Art from Prehistoric Times to the Present,. Vol. 3: Architecture, Its Ornament, City Plans, Gardens (3rd ed.). Tehran: Soroush Press. pp. 1119–1164.
• Golombek, Lisa; Wilber, Donald (1988). The Timurid Architecture of Iran and Turan, Volume I. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
• Hutt, Anthony (1978). "Iran". In Michell, George (ed.). Architecture of the Islamic World. New York: Thames and Hudson. pp. 251–258.
• O'Kane, Bernard (1987). Timurid Architecture in Khurasan. Costa Mesa, CA: Mazda Publishers.
• Pope, Arthur Upham (1965). Persian Architecture. New York: George Braziller. ISBN 978-0-8076-0308-6.
• Pope, Arthur Upham (1977). "The Safavid Period". In Pope, Arthur Upham; Ackerman, Phyllis (assistant) (eds.). A Survey of Persian Art from Prehistoric Times to the Present. Vol. 3: Architecture, Its Ornament, City Plans, Gardens (3rd ed.). Tehran: Soroush Press. pp. 1165–1225.

External links

Media related to Goharshad Mosque at Wikimedia Commons