Chartaq ( fa, چارطاق), chahartaq (), chartaqi (), or chahartaqi (), literally meaning "having four arches", is an architectural unit consisted of four

barrel vault A barrel vault, also known as a tunnel vault, wagon vault or wagonhead vault, is an architectural element formed by the extrusion of a single curve (or pair of curves, in the case of a pointed barrel vault) along a given distance. The curves are ...

s and a

dome A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...

History

Chartaqi was a prominent element in

Iranian architecture Iranian architecture or Persian architecture (Persian: معمارى ایرانی, ''Memāri e Irāni'') is the architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia, the Caucasus and Central Asia. Its history dates back to at least 5,000 BC w ...

, having various functions and used in both secular and religious contexts for 1,500 years, with the first instance apparently being developed in the

Sasanian The Sasanian () or Sassanid Empire, officially known as the Empire of Iranians (, ) and also referred to by historians as the Neo-Persian Empire, was the last Iranian empire before the early Muslim conquests of the 7th-8th centuries AD. Named ...

city of Gor (Firuzabad) in 210s AD by King

Ardashir I Ardashir I (Middle Persian: 𐭠𐭥𐭲𐭧𐭱𐭲𐭥, Modern Persian: , '), also known as Ardashir the Unifier (180–242 AD), was the founder of the Sasanian Empire. He was also Ardashir V of the Kings of Persis, until he founded the new emp ...

. The biggest instance of chahartaq is that of the so-called Palace of

Shapur I Shapur I (also spelled Shabuhr I; pal, 𐭱𐭧𐭯𐭥𐭧𐭥𐭩, Šābuhr ) was the second Sasanian King of Kings of Iran. The dating of his reign is disputed, but it is generally agreed that he ruled from 240 to 270, with his father Ardas ...

Bishapur Bishapur (Middle Persian: ''Bay-Šāpūr''; fa, بیشاپور}, ''Bishâpûr'') was an ancient city in Sasanid Persia (Iran) on the ancient road between Persis and Elam. The road linked the Sassanid capitals Estakhr (very close to Persepolis) ...

, also in Pars. Many pre-Islamic chahartaqs have survived, but they are usually just the sole surviving structure of a much bigger complex. The chahartaq structure was adopted in

Islamic architecture Islamic architecture comprises the architectural styles of buildings associated with Islam. It encompasses both secular and religious styles from the early history of Islam to the present day. The Islamic world encompasses a wide geographic ar ...

.Dietrich Huff
"ČAHĀRṬĀQ"
''

Encyclopaedia Iranica An encyclopedia (American English) or encyclopædia (British English) is a reference work or compendium providing summaries of knowledge either general or special to a particular field or discipline. Encyclopedias are divided into articles ...

'', December 15, 1990 A related concept is ''čahārqāpū'' (). File:Baze Hoor fire temple.jpg, Baze Hoor fire temple, Arsacid period File:Zahak Fortress.jpg, Chahartaqi of the

Zahhak Castle Zahhak Castle (or citadel) is a castle in Hashtrud, East Azerbaijan Province, Iran. It is named after Zahhak, a figure in Persian mythology. According to various experts, it was inhabited from the second millennium BC until the Timurid era. It w ...

, Arsacid period File:Niasar Fire Temple.jpg,

Chartaqi of Neyasar Chartaq ( fa, چارطاق), chahartaq (), chartaqi (), or chahartaqi (), literally meaning "having four arches", is an architectural unit consisted of four barrel vaults and a dome. History Chartaqi was a prominent element in Iranian architect ...

at Neyasar, Kashan, Iran. Late

Arsacid The Parthian Empire (), also known as the Arsacid Empire (), was a major Iranian political and cultural power in ancient Iran from 247 BC to 224 AD. Its latter name comes from its founder, Arsaces I, who led the Parni tribe in conquer ...

or early Sassanian era. It is one of the few intact chartaqis. File:ChaharTaqi-KheirAbad Darafsh (4).jpg,

Chahartaqi of Kheirabad Chartaq ( fa, چارطاق), chahartaq (), chartaqi (), or chahartaqi (), literally meaning "having four arches", is an architectural unit consisted of four barrel vaults and a dome. History Chartaqi was a prominent element in Iranian architect ...

, Sassanian period File:Old exterior view Sassanid Chahartaghi Sarab.jpg, Chahartaq in Sarab, East Azerbaijan Province. Sassanian period File:Ateshgah Fire Temple.jpg,

Ateshgah of Baku , image = Jahlinmarceta baku temple.jpg , caption = , former_names = , map_type = , building_type = Ancient Syncretic (Zoroastrian/Hindu) Fire Temple, Mandir and Gurudwara , architectural_style = , st ...

. Many pre-Islamic chartaqis were part of a

fire temple A fire temple, Agiary, Atashkadeh ( fa, آتشکده), Atashgah () or Dar-e Mehr () is the place of worship for the followers of Zoroastrianism, the ancient religion of Iran (Persia). In the Zoroastrian religion, fire (see ''atar''), together wi ...

File:Atashkadeh (fireplace).jpg,

Fire Temple of Amol The Fire Temple of Amol, also known as Atashkadeh Amol or Amol Atash Kadeh or Shams Tabarsi Amuli, is a temple in Amol, Mazandaran, Iran. It related to the period Sassanid The Sasanian () or Sassanid Empire, officially known as the Empire o ...

File:Bahramfiretempleyo.jpg, Bahram fire temple File:Chartaghi Karchan.jpg, Chartaqi of Karchan File:Chartaqi of Konar Siyah چهارطاقی کنارسیاه - panoramio.jpg, Chahartaqi of Konarsiyah File:Harpak Fire Temple in Abyaneh (reconstruction).PNG, Chartaq on top of the Harpak fire temple in Abyaneh File:Mausoleum in the vicinity of Isfahan by Eugène Flandin.jpg, A chahartaq as a small mausoleum, with a grave inside, near

Isfahan Isfahan ( fa, اصفهان, Esfahân ), from its Achaemenid empire, ancient designation ''Aspadana'' and, later, ''Spahan'' in Sassanian Empire, middle Persian, rendered in English as ''Ispahan'', is a major city in the Greater Isfahan Regio ...

, 1840 drawing by

Eugène Flandin Jean-Baptiste Eugène Napoléon Flandin (15 August 1809 in Naples – 29 September 1889 in Tours), French orientalist, painter, archaeologist, and politician. Flandin's archeological drawings and some of his military paintings are valued m ...

File:Samanid Mausoleum.jpg,

Samanid Mausoleum The Samanid Mausoleum is a mausoleum located in the northwestern part of Bukhara, Uzbekistan, just outside its historic center. It was built in the 10th century CE as the resting place of the powerful and influential Islamic Samanid dynasty that ...

File:Sultan Sanjar mausoleum.jpg,

Tomb of Ahmed Sanjar The Tomb of Ahmad Sanjar is a mausoleum commemorating Ahmad Sanjar, a Seljuk ruler of Khorasan. It was built in 1157 in the medieval city of Merv in the Karakum Desert in Turkmenistan. Throughout his reign, Sanjar fought off several invasions a ...

File:Fountain Ibn Tulun Mosque.jpg, Sabil

ablution Ablution is the act of washing oneself. It may refer to: * Ablution as hygiene * Ablution as ritual purification ** Ablution in Islam: *** Wudu, daily wash *** Ghusl, bathing ablution *** Tayammum, waterless ablution ** Ablution in Christianity * ...

fountain at

Mosque of Ibn Tulun The Mosque of Ibn Tulun ( ar, مسجد إبن طولون, Masjid Ibn Ṭūlūn) is located in Cairo, Egypt. It is one of the oldest mosques in Egypt as well as the whole of Africa surviving in its full original form, and is the largest mosque in ...

, Cairo, Egypt File:Barid Shahi tombs.jpg, Tomb of Ali Barid Ali barid Shah, Bidar, India File:Sultanhani-jries.jpg, "Kiosk-mosque" at

Sultan Han Sultan Han is a large 13th-century Seljuk caravanserai located in the town of Sultanhanı, Aksaray Province, Turkey. It is one of the three monumental caravanserais in the neighbourhood of Aksaray and is located about west of Aksaray on the ...

caravanserai, Turkey (Seljuq period) ''(see also

Tetrapylon A tetrapylon ( el, τετράπυλον, "four gates"), plural ''tetrapyla'', known in Latin as a ''quadrifrons'' (literally "four fronts") is a type of ancient Roman monument of cubic shape, with a gate on each of the four sides, generally built ...

)'' File:Yerevan, Surb Grigor Lusavorich Church6.JPG, Saint Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral, Yerevan, Armenia

Contemporary architecture

The main plan of the post-modern

Azadi Tower The Azadi Tower ( fa, برج آزادی, ; "Freedom Tower"), formerly known as the Shahyad Tower (, ; "Shah's Memorial Tower"), is a monument on Azadi Square in Tehran, Iran. It is one of the landmarks of Tehran, marking the west entrance to the ...

in Tehran is said to be influenced by the architecture of chartaqis. File:Shahyad.jpg, Azadi Tower File:Mausoleum of Kashefi 01.jpg, Monument of Molla Hossein Kashefi,

Sabzevar Sabzevar ( fa, سبزوار ), previously known as Beyhagh (also spelled "Beihagh"; fa, بيهق), is a city and capital of Sabzevar County, in Razavi Khorasan Province, approximately west of the provincial capital Mashhad, in northeastern ...

, built in 1974.
The post-modern design has incorporated the concepts
of chahartaqi and

iwan An iwan ( fa, ایوان , ar, إيوان , also spelled ivan) is a rectangular hall or space, usually vaulted, walled on three sides, with one end entirely open. The formal gateway to the iwan is called , a Persian term for a portal projecting ...

s. File:Persian Scholar pavilion in Viena UN (Rhazes&Khayyam).jpg,

Scholars Pavilion Scholars Pavilion or Scholars Chartagi is a monument donated by the nation of Iran to the United Nations Office at Vienna. The monument architecture is Persian Achaemenid architecture, with Persian columns and other features from Persepolis and ot ...

(the Scholars Chartagi) in Vienna, a
chahartaqi with elements from the architecture of

Persepolis , native_name_lang = , alternate_name = , image = Gate of All Nations, Persepolis.jpg , image_size = , alt = , caption = Ruins of the Gate of All Nations, Persepolis. , map = , map_type ...

File:مسجد سالن اجلاس بین المللی اصفهان.jpg, A sample of modern Islamic architecture - The mosque of international conferences center - Isfahan

References

{{Islamic architecture Domes Architecture in Iran Sasanian architecture Islamic architectural elements Arches and vaults Iranian inventions

History

Contemporary architecture

See also

References