Editing Iranian architecture (section)

=== Ilkhanids (13th–14th centuries) ===
{{Main|Ilkhanid architecture}}
[[File:Mezquita del Viernes, Yazd, Irán, 2016-09-21, DD 10.jpg|left|thumb|upright|Entrance portal with ''muqarnas'' vaulting, twin minarets, and tile decoration at the [[Jameh Mosque of Yazd]], [[Ilkhanate|Ilkhanid period]] (14th century)]]
From the 13th century to the early 16th century, Iran and Central Asia came under the control of two major dynasties descended from the Mongol conqueror [[Genghis Khan]], the [[Ilkhanids]] (1256–1353) and the [[Timurid dynasty|Timurids]] (1370–1506). This period saw the construction of some of the largest and most ambitious Iranian monuments of the Islamic world.<ref name=":24356">{{harvnb|Bloom|Blair|2009|loc=''Architecture (VI. c. 1250–c. 1500)''}}</ref> The Ilkhanids were initially traditional nomadic Mongols, but at the end of the 13th century, [[Ghazan Khan]] ({{Reign|1295|1304}}) converted to Islam and aided a cultural and economic resurgence in which urban Iranian culture was of primary importance. Ilkhanid vassals, like the [[Muzaffarids (Iran)|Muzaffarids]] and the [[Jalayirids]], also sponsored new constructions.<ref name=":24356" />

[[File:Abdul_Samad_Isfahani_Shrine_Natanz.jpg|thumb|Muqarnas dome inside the Mausoleum of [[Abdussamad Esfahani|Shaykh 'Abd al-Samad]] in [[Natanz]] (1307–8)]]
[[Ilkhanid architecture]] elaborated earlier Iranian traditions. In particular, greater attention was given to interior spaces and how to organize them. Rooms were made taller, while transverse vaulting was employed and walls were opened with arches, thus allowing more light and air inside.<ref name=":24356" /> ''Muqarnas'', which was previously confined to covering limited transitional elements like squinches, was now used to cover entire domes and vaults for purely decorative effect. The Tomb of [[Abdussamad Esfahani|'Abd al-Samad]] in [[Natanz]] (1307–8), for example, is covered inside by an elaborate ''muqarnas'' dome that is made from stucco suspended below the pyramidal vault that roofs the building.<ref name=":24356" />

Brick remained the main construction material, but more color was added through the use of tile mosaic, which involved cutting monochrome tiles of different colors into pieces that were then fitted together to form larger patterns, especially [[Islamic geometric patterns|geometric motifs]] and floral motifs.<ref name=":24356" /> Carved stucco decoration also continued. Some exceptional examples in Iran come from this period, including a wall of carved stucco in the [[Mausoleum of Pir-i Bakran]] in Linjan (near Isfahan),<ref name=":2435623" /> and a mihrab added in 1310 to the Jameh Mosque of Isfahan. The latter is one of the masterpieces of Islamic sculptural art from this era, featuring multiple layers of deeply-carved vegetal motifs, along with a carved inscription.{{Sfn|Blair|Bloom|1995|pp=10–11}}

[[File:Irnt038-Isfahan-Meczet Piątkowy.jpg|thumb|Details of the carved stucco mihrab added by the Ilkhanids in 1310 to the Jameh Mosque in Isfahan]]
Various mosques were built or expanded during this period, usually following the four-iwan plan for congregational mosques (e.g. at [[Jameh Mosque of Varamin|Varamin]] and [[Jameh Mosque of Kerman|Kirman]]), except in the northwest, where cold winters discouraged the presence of an open courtyard, as at the Jameh Mosque of [[Ardabil]] (now ruined). Another hallmark of the Ilkhanid period is the introduction of monumental mosque portals topped by twin minarets, as seen at the [[Jameh Mosque of Yazd]].<ref name=":24356" /> Caravanserais were built again, although the [[Khan al-Mirjan]] in Baghdad is the only surviving example.<ref name=":24356" />

[[File:Solt dome 1.JPG|thumb|[[Dome of Soltaniyeh|Mausoleum of Uljaytu]] at [[Soltaniyeh]] (early 14th century)]]
The most impressive monument to survive from this period is the [[Dome of Soltaniyeh|Soltaniyeh Mausoleum]] built for Sultan [[Uljaytu]] ({{Reign|1304|1317}}), a massive dome supported on a multi-level octagonal structure with internal and external galleries. Only the domed building remains today, missing much of its original turquoise tile decoration, but it was once the centerpiece of a larger religious complex including a mosque, a [[Bimaristan|hospital]], and living areas.<ref name=":05223">{{Cite book |last=Tabbaa |first=Yasser |title=Encyclopaedia of Islam, Three |publisher=Brill |year=2007 |isbn=9789004161658 |editor-last=Fleet |editor-first=Kate |language=en |chapter=Architecture |editor-last2=Krämer |editor-first2=Gudrun |editor-last3=Matringe |editor-first3=Denis |editor-last4=Nawas |editor-first4=John |editor-last5=Rowson |editor-first5=Everett}}</ref> Smaller tombs and shrines in honour of local Sufis were also built or renovated by Ilkhanid patrons, such as the shrine of [[Bayazid Bastami]] in the town of [[Bastam]], the aforementioned Mausoleum of Pir-i Bakran, and the aforementioned Tomb of Abd-al-Samad.{{Sfn|Blair|Bloom|1995|pp=8–10}} Also in Bastam, the Ilkhanids built a traditional tower tomb to house the remains of Uljaytu's infant son. Unusually, rather than being an independent structure, the tomb was erected behind the ''qibla'' wall of the town's main mosque – a configuration also found in some contemporary [[Mamluk architecture]].{{Sfn|Blair|Bloom|1995|pp=8–10}}