Interior view of the marble throne by Eugène Flandin

The Marble Throne ( fa, تخت مرمر, Taxt-e Marmar) is a 250-year-old royal

throne A throne is the seat of state of a potentate or dignitary, especially the seat occupied by a sovereign on state occasions; or the seat occupied by a pope or bishop on ceremonial occasions. "Throne" in an abstract sense can also refer to the monar ...

in Golestan Palace,

Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

. The throne was built from 1747 to 1751. It was designed by Mirza Baba Shirazi (Naqqash Bashi) and royal

stonecutter Stonemasonry or stonecraft is the creation of buildings, structures, and sculpture using stone as the primary material. It is one of the oldest activities and professions in human history. Many of the long-lasting, ancient shelters, temples, mo ...

, Mohammad Ebrahim Esfahani. It consists of 65 marble stone pieces from a mine in

Yazd Yazd ( fa, یزد ), formerly also known as Yezd, is the capital of Yazd Province, Iran. The city is located southeast of Isfahan. At the 2016 census, the population was 1,138,533. Since 2017, the historical city of Yazd is recognized as a Worl ...

. The throne's supports are carved in the shape of men, women, fairies, and demons. The Royal Balcony of the Marble Throne is said to be built during the reign of Karim Khan Zand, but Karim khan is known to have even refused the title king, and preferred to sit on a carpet rather than a throne so his ownership of the Marble throne is unlikely. It was changed several times during the Qajar period. The twin stone columns of the balcony were transferred to Tehran, by the order of Agha Mohammad Khan, from

Shiraz Shiraz (; fa, شیراز, Širâz ) is the List of largest cities of Iran, fifth-most-populous city of Iran and the capital of Fars province, Fars Province, which has been historically known as Pars (Sasanian province), Pars () and Persis. As o ...

. The Sun Throne was probably modelled after it.

External links

Individual thrones Iranian culture Architecture in Iran {{Iran-stub