THE LANDSCAPE
The desert
Ancient caravanserail in the distance
A doorknocker for men and one for women. They produce different sounds, informing the host inside how to greet the guest.
Where once the camels were loaded with merchandise (or unloaded)
Young camels
No longer used for transport, they are raised for their meat.
Modern-day caravans
Mosques can pop up in the middle of nowhere, providing not only a place of worship, but sanitation and fresh water.
Ancient caravanserail. Meybod
Lake Bakhtegan, one of Iran's large saltwater lakes, now completely dry, as most others are.
Oasis
Dried-mud dwellings, now inhabitated
ZOROASTRIANISM
THE ANCIENT RELIGION OF PERSIA
SURVIVES IN ISOLATED AREAS.
IT IS MORE PROSPEROUS IN INDIA
WHERE THE DESCENDANTS OF
ZOROASTRIAN PERSIAN IMMIGRANTS
ARE KNOWN AS PARSIS
Yazd
Ahura Mazda
The eternal fire
Fire is seen as the supreme symbol of purity, and sacred fires are maintained in FireTemples (Agiaries). These fires represent the light of God (Ahura Mazda) as well as the illuminated mind, and are never extinguished. No Zoroastrian ritual or ceremony is performed without the presence of a sacred fire.
BBC
Yazd
Temple of Fire
A cistern with wind towers keeping the water cool
The Tower of Silence, where the remains of the deceased are excarnated by vultures
Where bodies would be laid for excarnation
ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA
Remains of the ziggurat of Sialk Kashan, 2,500 BC
Some sections date back to 6,000 BC
ANTIQUITY
THE SPLENDOR OF THE ACHAEMENIDES KINGS
PERSEPOLIS
To put an end to the Persian invasions, Alexander the Great took Persepolis in 330BC and burnt it to the ground
The curled finger is a sign of submission to the king
Sepultures of Achaemenid kings
Ahura Mazda and the pure elements; air, water, earth, and fire
Achaemenid desert lion
Modern rendition of the Achaemenid desert lion
Prayer of the Achaemenid kings - "Ahura Mazda, protect my nation from the two scourges: drought and lies"
THE ABANDONED CITADEL AND VILLAGE
OF IZAKHAST, FARS PROVINCE
NAIN, CENTRAL IRAN
The now abandoned and lifeless bazaar
Cistern and air towers
The Ardestan mosque, mostly Seljurk's architecture, 12th century
The Citadel of Rayen, pre-Islamic Sassanid era
JARDINS PERSANS
The gardens of Kashan
The Hamam of Ganjali Khan
The gardens of Dowlatabad, Yazd
One of the tallest "wind towers"
Hot air escapes upwards while cool winds are forced down.
Shazdeh Gardens, Mahan
MONTH OF MUHARRAM.
MOURNING IMAN HUSAYN,
KILLED IN KERBALA (NOW IN IRAQ).
MUSIC IS FORBIDDEN.
BLACK FLAGS, PROCESSIONS
AND SELF FLAGELLATION
ARE ENCOUNTERED EVERYWHERE
Waiting for the parade
This is fun!
The Mausoleum of Shah Nematollah, a renowned mystic and poet, Mahan
One of the rare portraits of Prophet Muhammad, drawn by a contemporary Dominican priest. Representations of the prophet are sacrilegious and forbidden, but this one is permitted.
ARTISANS AND CRAFTMEN
CONTINUE TO
IRAN II - CITY LIFE
THE LANDSCAPE
The desert
Ancient caravanserail in the distance
A doorknocker for men and one for women. They produce different sounds, informing the host inside how to greet the guest.
Where once the camels were loaded with merchandise (or unloaded)
Young camels
No longer used for transport, they are raised for their meat.
Modern-day caravans
Mosques can pop up in the middle of nowhere, providing not only a place of worship, but sanitation and fresh water.
Ancient caravanserail. Meybod
Lake Bakhtegan, one of Iran's large saltwater lakes, now completely dry, as most others are.
Oasis
Dried-mud dwellings, now inhabitated
ZOROASTRIANISM
THE ANCIENT RELIGION OF PERSIA
SURVIVES IN ISOLATED AREAS.
IT IS MORE PROSPEROUS IN INDIA
WHERE THE DESCENDANTS OF
ZOROASTRIAN PERSIAN IMMIGRANTS
ARE KNOWN AS PARSIS
Yazd
Ahura Mazda
The eternal fire
Fire is seen as the supreme symbol of purity, and sacred fires are maintained in FireTemples (Agiaries). These fires represent the light of God (Ahura Mazda) as well as the illuminated mind, and are never extinguished. No Zoroastrian ritual or ceremony is performed without the presence of a sacred fire.
BBC
Yazd
Temple of Fire
A cistern with wind towers keeping the water cool
The Tower of Silence, where the remains of the deceased are excarnated by vultures
Where bodies would be laid for excarnation
ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA
Remains of the ziggurat of Sialk Kashan, 2,500 BC
Some sections date back to 6,000 BC
ANTIQUITY
THE SPLENDOR OF THE ACHAEMENIDES KINGS
PERSEPOLIS
To put an end to the Persian invasions, Alexander the Great took Persepolis in 330BC and burnt it to the ground
The curled finger is a sign of submission to the king
Sepultures of Achaemenid kings
Ahura Mazda and the pure elements; air, water, earth, and fire
Achaemenid desert lion
Modern rendition of the Achaemenid desert lion
Prayer of the Achaemenid kings - "Ahura Mazda, protect my nation from the two scourges: drought and lies"
THE ABANDONED CITADEL AND VILLAGE
OF IZAKHAST, FARS PROVINCE
NAIN, CENTRAL IRAN
The now abandoned and lifeless bazaar
Cistern and air towers
The Ardestan mosque, mostly Seljurk's architecture, 12th century
The Citadel of Rayen, pre-Islamic Sassanid era
JARDINS PERSANS
The gardens of Kashan
The Hamam of Ganjali Khan
The gardens of Dowlatabad, Yazd
One of the tallest "wind towers"
Hot air escapes upwards while cool winds are forced down.
Shazdeh Gardens, Mahan
MONTH OF MUHARRAM.
MOURNING IMAN HUSAYN,
KILLED IN KERBALA (NOW IN IRAQ).
MUSIC IS FORBIDDEN.
BLACK FLAGS, PROCESSIONS
AND SELF FLAGELLATION
ARE ENCOUNTERED EVERYWHERE
Waiting for the parade
This is fun!
The Mausoleum of Shah Nematollah, a renowned mystic and poet, Mahan
One of the rare portraits of Prophet Muhammad, drawn by a contemporary Dominican priest. Representations of the prophet are sacrilegious and forbidden, but this one is permitted.
ARTISANS AND CRAFTMEN
CONTINUE TO
IRAN II - CITY LIFE