Situated in the province of
Azerbaijan of northwestern Iran, the remains of the Takht-e Soleyman complex can be found upon a grassy plain, surrounded by a volcanic mountain region. Meaning “the Throne of Solomon” in Persian, Sughurlukh in Turkish, translating to “a place abounding in
marmots”, Takht-e Soleyman was built in the thirteenth century under the
Ilkhanid dynasty as a summer and hunting palace. The Ilkhanid patron,
Abaqa Khan (r.1265-82), the second Ilkhan ruler and son of
Hülagü, the first ruler of the Ilkhanid dynasty, chose this site for his summer residence partly because of the massive ruins remaining of the old fire temple and Sasanian palace. The complex was created during the early phase of the Ilkhanid empire, and was a synthesis of Iranian and Central/Eastern Asian traditions. During the reign of
Hülagü, the Ilkhanids experienced great success in continuously conquering lands, so the province of Azerbaijan in Iran and three Iranian cities nearby (
Tabriz,
Maragha, and
Khoi), as well as an
ordū (royal encampment) on the
Jaghatu river, became the political headquarters for the dynasty now in Iran. The palace is oriented cardinally as in Mongol tradition with the entire complex being surrounded by a fortified ovular wall. Within this wall, the complex consists of a large courtyard with an artificial lake at its center. The entire courtyard is framed by porticoes, four
iwan complexes in each
cardinal direction, and “several polygonal structures”. Two large rectangular halls are placed in front of the south iwan and connect the surrounding ovular wall with the porticoed courtyard of the palace proper. An audience hall with a large dome is located behind the north iwan on the location of what was the Sasanian fire temple.
Muqarnas ceiling Excavated from under the ruins of Takht-e Soleyman, specifically in the southern octagonal chamber of the west iwan, is a stucco plate now kept in
Tehran at the
National Museum of Iran. On this
gypsum plate is a muqarnas plan believed to correspond to one quarter of the muqarnas vault of the southern chamber of the west iwan. This muqarnas plate is of the earliest known examples of an Islamic architectural plan for a muqarnas design. Although now broken into several pieces, the design on the plate consists of a geometric grid, 42 cm in length, for a curved muqarnas design. The majority of the design consists of squares, rhombi, and isosceles triangles all arranged along a diagonal axis with the empty upper right corner corresponding to the center of the muqarnas vault. The angles of each element are in multiples of 45° with few exceptions. Tiles found at Takht-e Soleyman are great artistic marks that demonstrate the interaction with and influence from China during the fourteenth century. There were six types of tiles: unglazed, partly glazed, monochrome glazed, luster-painting, Lajvardina (cobalt blue and white), and inglazed Lajvardina. The exterior tiles, including unglazed, partly glazed and monochrome glazed, are shaped as hexagons and composed with reddish clay, with turquoise or blue coloring. The design is inspired by Mongol and
Chinese ceramics, mainly from ceramics including
dragon or
phoenix motifs, and an interwoven line design. On the other hand, interior tiles include the luster-painting, Lajvardina and inglazed Lajvardina. They were white and yellow glazed, and were also usually hexagonal shaped. Regarding design, these tiles included multiple objects with floral, animal and human subjects, such as a horse rider surrounded by a floral arc. Geometric patterns were very prevalent, with the inclusion of interwoven lines, hexagon shaped tiles, and eight-pointed star symbols, deriving from Chinese ceramics that were very popular with Iranian merchants during the fourteenth century. The highly skilled glazing upon the tiles with their surface patterns in blue and white can be followed back to the Islamic city of
Baghdad. Takht-e Soleyman's tile decorations show a mixing of multiple cultures, using artistic traditions from
Buddhism,
Chinese mythology, and pre-Islamic Iran, and the current Islamic world itself. For example, the
lotus flower, which is adopted from the Buddhist religion, is often used in floral designs as a symbol for wealth or is viewed as sacred. Secondly, as mentioned before, the dragon was a common motif related with
Taoism,
Confucianism, and Buddhism. It presented notions of
sovereignty, and was viewed as the ancestor of all existing animals. The reinterpretation of a dragon or a lotus flower in an Iranian-Islamic way expanded the diversity of Islamic art in the medieval period. Thirdly, birds can also be seen in the tiles, specifically the crane, symbolizing longevity and wisdom from Chinese mythology. Mongol traditions are reflected in the frequent, deep blue color of the tiles, representing the sky or eternity. Also, there are Mongol scenes of horsemen hunting, expressing their important military matters. There are also religious themes on the tiles, presented through
Qur’an quotes, mentioning themes from the
Shi’a branch of Islam. Many of the tiles were produced by craftsmen who followed the Shi’a path, where a hexagonal, exterior tile has the name ‘
Ali’, the Prophet Muhammad's cousin, around the border six times. The British explorers
Theodore and
Mabel Bent dug “in front of a mosque” at the site in early May 1889, returning to London later with at least one tile fragment. ==Gallery==