photo sharing and upload picture albums photo forums search pictures popular photos photography help login
Noor Khan | profile | all galleries >> Iran >> GALLERY # 1 Isfahan tree view | thumbnails | slideshow

GALLERY # 1 Isfahan

logo
The name of Isfahan evokes a memory of ancient Persian greatness-curvy buildings, intricately decorated with gold and turquoise tiles, scents of spices and perfume, poets and beautiful women.
The city lies at the foot of the Zagros mountains, by the Zayandeh river. Isfahan's history goes back a long way. It started out as a provincial capital under the Sassanides, then conquered by the Muslims in 640. Later the Mongols arrived and slew about 200,000 of its people in revenge for daring to resist them. The golden age of the city started when Abbas the Great made it his capital in 1598. The previous capital of the Safavids, Tabriz, was too close to the enemy Ottoman empire for his liking, and central Isfahan near the great trade routes was the perfect choice for a new one. He restructured the city and opened his court to foreigners, so that Isfahan became a legend of splendour even far away. Shah Abbas I built a royal palace as well as the Imam (Shah) Mosque. He also had many caravanserais constructed, a main street lined with trees, and a central square which was said to be the largest in the world. After hundred years of glory, the city went into a bit of a decline, and after an 18th-century invasion by the Afghans (1722), the capital was moved away to Shiraz.
*********************************************************************************

The Imam Mosque
The Imam Mosque
Mosque detail
Mosque detail
Imam Mosque
Imam Mosque
Dome & Minar
Dome & Minar
Sheikh Lutfullah Mosque
Sheikh Lutfullah Mosque
Mosaic tile detail and minar
Mosaic tile detail and minar
Imam Mosque from behind
Imam Mosque from behind
Isfahan and Zagros Mountains
Isfahan and Zagros Mountains
Pol-e-Khajoo
Pol-e-Khajoo
Tiled arch
Tiled arch
Tilework in mosque
Tilework in mosque
Inside dome-Imam Mosque
Inside dome-Imam Mosque
Back street mosque and chaddar
Back street mosque and chaddar
Back street and mosque
Back street and mosque
Backstreet, minar, and dome (and wires)
Backstreet, minar, and dome (and wires)
Backstreet and mosque
Backstreet and mosque
Backstreet mosque
Backstreet mosque
Bazaar
Bazaar
Brick archway
Brick archway
Modressa garden
Modressa garden
Ceiling mosaic tile detail
Ceiling mosaic tile detail
Modern archeticure
Modern archeticure
Mosque
Mosque
Mosque detail
Mosque detail
Mosque
Mosque
Madraseh-ye Chahar behind trees
Madraseh-ye Chahar behind trees
Inside mosque
Inside mosque
Palace of Ali Qapu
Palace of Ali Qapu
Palace of Ali Qapu-ceiling detail
Palace of Ali Qapu-ceiling detail
Shaking Minarets
Shaking Minarets
Shop across from my room
Shop across from my room
Mosaic tile detail
Mosaic tile detail
Mosaic tile detail
Mosaic tile detail
Mosaic tile detail
Mosaic tile detail
Mosaic tile detail
Mosaic tile detail
Mosaic tile detail
Mosaic tile detail
Ceiling detail-Palace of Ali Qapu
Ceiling detail-Palace of Ali Qapu
Mosaic detail
Mosaic detail