In images, in pictures“Extraordinary gardens” (5/6). “In the image of paradise”, as wanted, in the 16th century, the Safavid ruler Abbas I, Isfahan makes people dream. The splendors of the ancient Persian capital are still a source of pride and freshness for Iranians today.
To describe the beauty and the historical richness of the city of Isfahan, in the center of the country, the Iranians do not show much modesty. “Esfahan, nesf-e jahan! “, they say in Persian. Which means : “Isfahan, half the world! “ To discover this gem of the Middle East, which became the capital of Persia at the end of the 16th centurye century under the reign of Shah Abbas, belonging to the Safavid dynasty, there is nothing better than taking a stroll from the great Naghsh-e Jahan square (“ the image of the world »), Now called Imam Khomeini.
Around its immense rectangular basin, four buildings: the entrance to the historic Isfahan bazaar, Ali Qapu’s palace and the two mosques of Imam and Sheikh Lotfollah, which symbolize Islam and especially Shiism, which has become the official religion under the Safavids. After the Iranian revolution, in 1979, the frescoes on the walls of Ali Qapu’s palace, deemed “anti-Islamic”, were destroyed. On summer evenings, a little before nightfall and as the temperature drops, the inhabitants of Isfahan, these great picnic enthusiasts, storm the grass around the large pool. The more adventurous go around the square in horse-drawn carriages.
The royal road to the afterlife
After Naghsh-e Jahan Square, direction Chehel Sotoun Palace, “ forty columns “ in Persian. This name refers to the twenty columns of the building adding to their reflection in the large basin that borders it. Dating from the reign of the Safavid king Shah Abbas II (XVIIe century), this palace was the place where the coronation ceremonies of kings and the reception of foreign guests were organized.
Leaving Chehel Sotoun, you have to walk a few hundred meters on the busy Chahar Bagh Avenue (“ four gardens ”) to discover another palace with a breathtaking garden, named Hacht-Behecht,“ the eight paradises ”in Persian. Also dating from the Safavid dynasty, it is built according to an octagonal plan and consists of eight large rooms.
“In Chahar Bagh now reigns an unprecedented joy. Here, Iranians from all walks of life mingle, living together with tolerance. »Ali Khodayi, Iranian writer
His garden, like that of Chehel Sotoun, is “ the perfect Iranian garden par excellence, explains Iranian Ayda Alehashemi, architect and landscape designer in Paris. The gardens represent the paradise that the Iranians are trying to build on Earth. The exemplary garden is surrounded by walls separating it from the outside world, from here below, but also from the devils. From a practical point of view, these walls protect it from the harsh climate of the Iranian desert plateau, sandstorms, winds coming from the desert and aggressive heat waves. Another feature of these gardens is that they all have a central axis, connecting the entrance to the palace. This movement consisting in starting from here below to reach the beyond, to walk a path to become a master after having been a disciple, also constitutes our conception of the world. ”
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