Monar Jonban

The Monar Jonban (Persian: منار جنبان, meaning shaking minarets), is a monument located in Esfahan, in central Iran. Construction began in the 14th century Safavid or Ilkhanate dynasties of Iran to cover the grave of Sufi ''Amu Abdollah Soqla''. Its notable feature is that if one of the minarets is shaken, the other minaret will shake as well.

History

The ''iwan (eyvān)'' and porch were probably erected shortly after 1316 under the Ilkhanate dynasty as a shrine for Sufi ''Amu Abdollah Soqla'', a hermit buried here. The brick minarets were constructed later, and are probably of Safavid dynasty era origin (c. 15th–17th centuries).

The ''iwan'' is high and in width, the minarets are taller and are in circumference. The roof above the shrine contains some skilled brickwork.

Shaking minarets

The minarets are responsible for the fame of the otherwise architecturally undistinguished shrine. Because of the ratio between the height and width of the minarets and the width of the ''iwan'', if one minaret is shaken, the other will shake in unison. This example of coupled oscillation can be observed from ground level.
;Structural damage
The wooden beams on the upper part of the minarets have been placed there to facilitate the shaking of the minarets, but the presence of wood in the brickwork causes other complications. The repeated shaking has been responsible for considerable structural damage.

Shaking by visitors is in theory restricted to once every twenty minutes. However, particularly during holidays, there is a constant stream of people who experiment with the phenomenon. The damage is locally believed by some to have been incurred during the periods of occupation by British soldiers.

However, the most logical reason for the minarets to shake is the physical phenomenon of intensification or Doppler Effect. Because the minarets are light and quite similar, shaking one affects the other. Tourists who have traveled to different parts of the world have introduced minarets in their observations that have the same characteristics in other parts of the world. But it is certain that the minarets of Isfahan are different from other moving minarets, and that is that in addition to the movement of the minarets, other parts of the building also move. Shake a brick minaret,
that never falls

;Imanshahr shaking minarets
There is another pair of shaking minarets also in Isfahan Province, at Imanshahr, of the earlier Ilkhanid dynasty era. They were built during the time of ''Öljaitü'' (1280–1316). These have lost the upper two thirds of their height.

Gallery

File:Monar Jonban Isfahan Aarash (22).jpg, Front view
File:Monar Jonban Isfahan Aarash (7).jpg, View under the porch arch
File:Monar Jonban Isfahan Aarash (16).jpg, Ancient tombstone
File:Monar Jonban Isfahan Aarash (4).jpg, A near view of the left minaret
File:Monar Jonban Isfahan Aarash (5).jpg, A near view of the right minaret
File:Monar Jonban Isfahan Aarash (15).jpg, A view from inside
File:Rocking Minarets of Isfahan.jpg, Monar Jonban, Isfahan

See also

*Safavid art
* Iranian architecture

References

External links

Isfahan.org: photo

More Photos, Tishineh

{{Isfahan Province
Buildings and structures completed in 1316
14th-century mosques
Mosques in Isfahan
Safavid architecture
Towers in Iran
14th-century architecture