Editing Iranian architecture (section)

== General characteristics ==
=== Fundamental principles ===
[[File:33 Bridges 3.jpg|right|thumb|[[Si-o-se Pol]], one of the bridges of Isfahan]]
Traditional Persian architecture has maintained a continuity that, although temporarily distracted by internal political conflicts or foreign invasion, nonetheless has achieved an unmistakable style.<ref name=":0" />

[[Arthur Pope]], a 20th-century scholar of Persian architecture, described it in these terms: "there are no trivial buildings; even garden pavilions have nobility and dignity, and the humblest [[caravanserai]]s generally have charm. In expressiveness and communicativity, most Persian buildings are lucid, even eloquent. The combination of intensity and simplicity of form provides immediacy, while ornament and, often, subtle proportions reward sustained observation."<ref name=autogenerated1>[[Arthur Upham Pope]]. ''Persian Architecture''. George Braziller, New York, 1965. p.10</ref>

According to scholars [[Nader Ardalan]] and [[Laleh Bakhtiar]], the guiding formative motif of Iranian architecture has been its cosmic [[symbol]]ism "by which man is brought into communication and participation with the powers of heaven".<ref>[[Nader Ardalan]] and [[Laleh Bakhtiar]]. ''Sense of Unity; The Sufi Tradition in Persian Architecture''. 2000. {{ISBN|1-871031-78-8}}</ref>{{Page needed|date=August 2023}} This theme has not only given unity and continuity to the architecture of Persia, but has been a primary source of its emotional character as well.{{Clarify|reason=What is "emotional character" supposed to mean in this context, to general readers? Is this based on the same source cited before this?|date=August 2023}}

=== Materials ===
[[File:Abyane, Iran, (2022) - 21.jpg|right|thumb|Rural houses in the plateau of central Iran, built using local [[clay]] and stone, [[Abianeh]] village, Kashan]]
Available building materials dictate major forms in traditional Iranian architecture. Heavy [[clay]]s, readily available at various places throughout the plateau, have encouraged the development of the most primitive of all building techniques, molded [[mud]], compressed as solidly as possible, and allowed to dry. This technique, used in Iran from ancient times, has never been completely abandoned. The abundance of heavy plastic earth, in conjunction with a tenacious lime [[Mortar (masonry)|mortar]], also facilitated the development and use of [[brick]].<ref>[[Arthur Upham Pope]]. ''Persian Architecture''. George Braziller, New York, 1965. p.9</ref>

=== Design ===
[[File:Perspolis.jpg|upright|thumb|Persian-style column as seen in Persepolis]]
Certain design elements of Persian architecture have persisted throughout the [[history of Iran]]. The most striking are a marked feeling for [[Measurement|scale]] and a discerning use of simple and massive forms. The consistency of decorative preferences, the high-arched [[Portal (architecture)|portal]] set within a [[Alcove (architecture)|recess]], [[column]]s with bracket capitals, and recurrent types of plan and elevation can also be mentioned. Through the ages these elements have recurred in completely different types of buildings, constructed for various programs and under the patronage of [[List of kings of Persia|a long succession of rulers]].

[[File:Baghe Eram Shiraz.jpg|right|thumb|[[Eram Garden]] (19th century) in [[Shiraz]], with example of a ''[[talar]]''{{Sfn|Grigor|2021|pp=175–176}}]]
The columned [[porch]], or ''[[talar]]'', seen in the rock-cut tombs near [[Persepolis]], reappear in [[Sassanid]] temples, and in late Islamic times it was used as the portico of a palace or mosque, and adapted even to the architecture of roadside tea-houses. Similarly, the [[dome]] on four arches, so characteristic of Sassanid times, is a still to be found in many cemeteries and [[Imamzadeh]]s across [[Iran]] today. The notion of earthly towers reaching up toward the sky to mingle with the divine towers of heaven lasted into the 19th century, while the interior court and pool, the angled entrance and extensive decoration are ancient, but still common, features of Iranian architecture.<ref name=autogenerated1 />

=== City planning ===
A [[List of circular cities|circular city plan]] was a characteristic of several major Parthian and Sasanian cities, such as [[Hatra]] and [[Firuzabad, Fars|Gor]] (Firuzabad). Another city design was based on a square geometry, found in the Eastern Iranian cities such as [[Bam, Iran|Bam]] and [[Zaranj]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Jayyusi |first1=Salma K. |title=The City in the Islamic World, Volume 94/1 & 94/2 |last2=Holod |first2=Renata |last3=Petruccioli |first3=Attilio |last4=Raymond |first4=Andre |date=2008 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=9789004162402 |pages=173–176 |language=en}}</ref>

=== Categorization of styles ===
[[File:One of the room in Atabaki sahn at Fatima Masumeh Shrine3, Qom, Iran.jpg|right|thumb|A ''hujra'' (room) at Atabaki sahn at [[Fatima Masumeh Shrine]], [[Qom]]]]
Overall, [[Mohammad Karim Pirnia]] categorizes the traditional architecture of the [[Greater Iran|Iranian lands]] throughout the ages into the six following classes or styles ''("sabk")'':<ref>''Sabk Shenasi Mi'mari Irani'' (Study of styles in [https://memari98.com/ Iranian architecture]), [[Karim Pirnia|M. Karim Pirnia]]. 2005. {{ISBN|964-96113-2-0}} p.24. Page 39, however, considers "pre-Parsi" as a distinct style.</ref>

*'''Zoroastrian''':
**'''The Parsian style''' (up until the third century BCE) including:
***Pre-Parsian style (up until the eighth century BCE) e.g. [[Chogha Zanbil]],
***[[Medes|Median]] style (from the eighth to the sixth century BCE),
***[[Achaemenid architecture|Achaemenid style]] (from the sixth to the fourth century BCE) manifesting in construction of spectacular cities used for governance and inhabitation (such as [[Persepolis]], [[Susa]], [[Ecbatana]]), temples made for worship and social gatherings (such as [[Zoroastrianism|Zoroastrian]] temples), and [[mausoleums]] erected in honor of fallen kings (such as the [[Tomb of Cyrus the Great]]),
**'''The [[Parthian style]]''' includes designs from the following eras:
***[[Seleucid]] era e.g. [[Anahita Temple]], [[Mahallat|Khorheh]],
***[[Parthian Empire|Parthian]] era e.g. [[Hatra]], the royal compounds at [[Nisa, Turkmenistan|Nysa]],
***[[Sassanid]] era e.g. [[Ghal'eh Dokhtar]], the [[Taq-i Kisra]], [[Bishapur]], [[Derbent|Darband]] (Derbent).
*'''Islamic''':
**'''The Khorasani style''' (from the late 7th until the end of the 10th century CE), e.g. [[Jameh Mosque of Nain]] and [[Jameh Mosque of Isfahan]],
**'''The Razi style''' (from the 11th century to the Mongol invasion period) which includes the methods and devices of the following periods:
***[[Samanid]] period, e.g. [[Samanid Mausoleum]],
***[[Ziyarid]] period, e.g. [[Gonbad-e Qabus (tower)|Gonbad-e Qabus]],
***[[Seljukid]] period, e.g. [[Kharraqan towers]],
**'''The Azari style''' (from the late 13th century to the appearance of the Safavid dynasty in the 16th century), e.g. [[Soltaniyeh]], [[Arg e Tabriz|Arg-i Alishah]], [[Jameh Mosque of Varamin]], [[Goharshad Mosque]], [[Bibi Khanum mosque]] in [[Samarqand]], tomb of [[Abdas-Samad Esfahani|Abdas-Samad]], [[Gur-e Amir]], [[Jameh mosque of Yazd]]
**'''The Isfahani style''' spanning through the [[Safavid]], [[Afsharid]], [[Zand dynasty|Zand]], and [[Qajarid]] dynasties starting from the 16th century onward, e.g. [[Chehelsotoon]], [[Ālī Qāpū|Ali Qapu]], [[Agha Bozorg Mosque, Kashan]], [[Shah Mosque (Isfahan)|Shah Mosque]], [[Sheikh Lotf Allah Mosque]] in [[Naqsh-i Jahan Square]].