Take A Trip To Maragheh To Explore Its Tombs And Domes

Many international tourists take a trip to Maragheh to observe the monumental brick structures built with a simplistic design and perfect proportion. Most parts of these monuments are almost plain, but the doorways are covered with bursts of elaborate decorations, made using the best ancient Persian skill and architecture.

The Mongol invasions and earthquakes have destroyed a major part of the original Seljuk tombs in Iran. Although there were also major alterations done to the original structures, the monument still attracts many international visitors in its current form.

Gonbad-e Kabud

The tomb has been repeatedly attributed to the Christian mother of Hulagu. He is the Mongol ruler who attacked Iran in the thirteenth century. However, lots of Quranic verses decorating the tomb reject this widely believed hypothesis.

Gonbad-e Kabud has a decagonal chamber made of bricks with a stone base and a crypt. The dome on top of this structure is believed to have been double-shelled, but only the base of the outer one is remained. The delicate brickwork and artistic inscriptions on this tomb tower have made it worth a visit.

Gonbad-e Sorkh (Red Tomb)

This is one of the brick-made Seljuk tombs in Iran known for its red color bricks. This monument has a square chamber which transits into an eight-sided shape before getting to the top. It is believed that a dome used to sit on top of this section. Kufic inscriptions with geometric patterns in brick are other spectacular aspects giving beauty to this structure. There is a basement space like in other tomb towers to bury the person for whom the monument is made.

Modavar Dome

From architecture point of view, this Seljuk tomb tower looks like a watch tower. This idea is further enhanced by the solid structure designed for the tomb. It stands like a stronghold having brick-made decorations on the exterior and either sides of its entrance.

Ghaffarieh Dome

The Ghaffarieh Dome is one of the rare towers remaining from the Ilkhanid times. It is also a classic example of the ancient Persian architecture and is decorated with tiles sporting glorious designs. You can take a trip to Maragheh and visit the dome to see an entirely different building style. It is constructed by using a set of incurved tiles arranged by putting one besides each other. These tiles are placed in a manner to display sun and flower shapes glazed by dark blue colors.