Arg of Tabriz

Arg of Tabriz
ارگ تبريز
Near Tabriz in Iran
Arg of Tabriz, 2022
Site information
Type	Mausoleum and mosque (14th century–1641) Citadel and barracks (19th–20th centuries) Park (20th century) Mosque
Condition	Partial ruinous state
Location
Arg of Tabriz Location of the Arg in Iran
Coordinates	38°4′20.5″N 46°17′19.7″E
Site history
Built	AH 710 (1310/1311 CE)–AH 720 (1320/1321)
Materials	Bricks
Fate	Monument

Masjid-i-Jami of Ali Shah
Religion
Affiliation	Islam (former)
Ecclesiastical or organisational status	Mausoleum and mosque (14th century–1641)
Status	Inactive (partial ruinous state)
Location
Location	Tabriz, East Azerbaijan
Country	Iran
Geographic coordinates	38°4′20.5″N 46°17′19.7″E
Architecture
Architect(s)	Falaki Tabrizi
Type	Mosque architecture
Style	Ilkhanate
Founder	Ali Shah
Completed	AH 710 (1310/1311 CE)–AH 720 (1320/1321)
Demolished	1641 CE (partially collapsed due to the Tabriz earthquake)
Specifications
Minaret(s)	Two (since destroyed)
Minaret height	61 m (200 ft)
Materials	Bricks, marble, tiles
Iran National Heritage List
Official name	Alishah Mosque
Type	Built
Designated	1932
Reference no.	170
Conservation organization	Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization of Iran

The Arg of Tabriz (Persian: ارگ تبريز, romanized: Arg Alishah), and also known as the Arg-e Alishah, the Arch of Alishah, the Arg Citadel, and Masjid Ali-Shāh, is the remnants of a large acropolis fortification (whence the metathetic name ark or arg plus polis), city wall and mosque, located in downtown Tabriz, in the province of East Azerbaijan, Iran. Its structure has long been visible from far distances in Tabriz, more recently partially obscured by newly-erected buildings.

The structure was initially a compound, containing a great vaulted mosque, adjoining prayer halls and libraries, a vast courtyard containing a huge reflecting pool, and a mausoleum—all surrounded by a containing wall. It was built in 14th century during the Ilkhanate era. The point of pride for the building was that its vaulted ayvan was larger than the famous historic vault of Khosrow/Kisra, the Taq Kisra at Ctesiphon/Mada'in. However, with the sudden death of the governor of the city and with some construction complications in constructing a roofed building without pillar for such a huge complex, the mausoleum structure remained incomplete.

In the 19th century with the rise of tensions between Iran and Russia the structure rapidly turned into the city's fort and additional military installations such as a barracks and cannon foundry were added to the original structure. During the 20th century, the military installations were removed from original construction and the surrounding of the ark turned into a park. In the late 20th century a big mosque was built next to the citadel.

The former mosque was added to the Iran National Heritage List in 1932, administered by the Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization of Iran.

History

Ali Shah Mosque

The original construction of the mosque was made between AH 710 (1310/1311 CE) and AH 720 (1320/1321), during the Ilkhanate era by Ali Shah, the Iranian vizier during the reign of Oljeitu and Abu Sa'id. Organized around four iwans, and oriented towards qibla, the Ali Shah Mosque had a marble paved rectangular sahn, 286 metres (938 ft) wide by 229 metres (751 ft) long, that was entered through a pishtaq. The mihrab, visible at the centre of the only remaining qibla wall, has three relieving arches above it; and on either side of the mihrab are two windows, high above ground level. Bounded by large plain brick walls of all four sides, the sahn contained an octagonal fountain, with four stone lion monuments sprouting water, and surrounding trees. The walls were broken only by the curved corners of the qibla and the rounded bastion behind the mihrab recess. The main iwan barrel vault was 30.5 metres (100 ft) wide and 48 metres (157 ft) deep, that was 65.5 metres (215 ft) from the portal and the mihrab. The total height of the vault was over 45.7 metres (150 ft) and was approximately 24 metres (79 ft) above the ground. During the construction, the main barrel vault collapsed and the construction was stopped afterward.

Two minarets rose from the base, measuring approximately 61 metres (200 ft) above the ground level. Attached to either side of the iwan walls were also a madrasa and a khanqa. Little is known about these two structures, as both have completely collapsed.

An earthquake in 1641 severely damaged and collapsed the monument. Centuries later, between the eruption of the Russo-Persian War, 1804-1813, and the Russo-Persian War (1826-1828), the compound was quickly reconstructed as a military compound. During the reconstruction of the Arg compound, a foundry factory for the manufacturing of cannons for the Iranian Army was built as well as a military headquarters, a barrack for the troops, and a small palace. Samson Makintsev (better known as Samson Khan) a Qajar Iranian general of Russian origin, lived inside the citadel for years together with his wife, the daughter of Prince Aleksandre of Georgia.

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  Remnants of the Arg of Tabriz, in Jean Chardin's drawing of Tabriz, 1673.
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  Ruins of the Arg, Eugène Flandin 1840.
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  A US flag flies over the US Consulate near the Arg during the Persian Constitutional Revolution.

Shelling of Arg by Russian troops, 1911

During the 1911 Russian invasion of Tabriz, the Russians shelled the Arg in initial attacks. Once they captured the city, they used the Arg as a central command center. During their occupation, because of careless handling, the artillery pieces they used set fire to parts of Arg.

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  Russian flag over the Arg, during 1911 Russian invasion.
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  Fire in the Arg due to careless handling of artillery pieces by Russian troops.

Destruction during the Pahlavi era

During the Pahlavi era, parts of the Arg, presumed to have been constructed in the 19th century during the Qajar dynasty, were destroyed. In the process much of the old Ilkhanid and Safavid remnants were also unwittingly destroyed, leaving only a tiny section of the back wall containing the mihrab intact. This destruction was with the aim of leaving behind only the original Arg construction, ridding it of its later additions and constructions. Much of the original building was lost in the process. The southern part of the Arg was turned into a park, the "Mellat Garden" (lit. park of the people), before the 1979 Iranian revolution.

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  A plan for reconstruction of the Arg's surrounding before the 1979 revolution.
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  Mellat Garden in, south of the Ark, before the 1979 revolution.

Destruction by revolutionaries, early 1980s

In the early 1980s after the suppression of uprising of supporters of Muslim People's Republic Party against the new establishment of mixing religion and state and neglecting of Azerbaijani minorities, Moslem Malakuti selected Juma of Tabriz as the new Imam. During his tenure in Tabriz, Juma began the destruction of the Arg's Qajar era addendum wall, cultural institutes, and ark theater and replaced them with a new mosque for Friday prayers. Some people believe this destruction of local heritage was a systematic destruction of local Azerbaijani identity.

Recent renovation, 1990s-present

In the 1990s and 2000s, a rehabilitation and renovation project was executed by the Iranian Organization for Cultural Heritages. During this rehabilitation, however, all of the remaining Qajar era development from the Arg citadel were destroyed. At the same period, a new big mosque was built next to the Arg citadel. The superstructure of the new mosque undermines the architecture of the Arg citadel. Despite the regulations of the Iranian Organization for Cultural Heritages and several court hearings, the construction of the new structure was completed.

The construction of the mosque completely destroyed the ancient foundations of the original Arg that existed underground and were going to be used for a reconstruction attempt at the end of the Pahlavi era. Thus, the new Islamic regime eliminated any chance of methodical reconstruction by wiping out the remaining foundations of the Arg. Meanwhile, the main prayer hall of the ancient mosque was turned into a car park, in direct violation of the edict of the Koran which considered a mosque's ground to be sacred and inviolable as long as the traces of it remain. It is visually clear that the new car park was created on the remains of the main prayer hall of the 700-year old grand mosque.

Gallery

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  The Arg, the southern view.
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  The Arg view at night, the southern view.
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  The Arg reconstruction, northern face.
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Construction of a new mosque in front of the Arg citadel, 2013

See also

• Islam in Iran
• List of mosques in Iran
• List of Iranian castles
• Iranian architecture

Further reading

• Hillenbrand, Robert (2000). Islamic Architecture: Form, Function, and Meaning. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. pp. 107, 424, 491.
• O'Kane, Bernard (1995). Studies in Persian Art and Architecture. Cairo: The American University of Cairo. pp. 125–126.
• Pope, Arthur Upham (1965). Persian Architecture: The Triumph of Form and Color. New York: George Braziller, Inc. pp. 177–179, 231.
• Wilber, Donald N. (1955). The Architecture of Islamic Iran: The Il Khanid Period. New York: Greenwood Press, Publishers. pp. 146–149.

External links

• Afsar, K. (15 December 1986). "ARG-E ʿALĪŠĀH". Encyclopædia Iranica. Vol. I(4). pp. 396–397. Retrieved 30 December 2012.
• Blair, Sheila S. (2008). "Arg-i ʿAlī Shāh". In Madelung, Wilferd; Daftary, Farhad (eds.). Encyclopaedia Islamica Online. Brill Online. ISSN 1875-9831.
• Qarabagli, Vahid (31 January 2022). "The Troubled Story of the Tabriz Ark –Are There Deeper Meanings Behind Archaeological Insensitivity". The Caspian Post.
• Shishvan, S. Niroumand (2016). "Recognition of Arg-e Ali Shah, Also known as Arg-e Tabriz (Altar of Jama Masjid of Tabriz built in Ilkhanate period I)" (PDF). Journal of Art and Architecture Studies. 5 (1): 1–12. ISSN 2383-1553. Retrieved 22 March 2025.
• "Arg of Tabriz: a testament to Ilkhanate splendor". Tehran Times. 21 June 2024. Retrieved 22 March 2025.