Located in the Arg Square in Southern Tehran, the Bazar has several corridors that are over 10 kilometers in length. Tehran’s bazaar is one of the most important places of trading and selling goods in Iran, and it is an amazing fundamental and economical structure. A market that its main structure is a heritage of the Qajar era.

When Agha Mohammad Khan of Qajar period was the king, the Bazaar started a time of booming that continued for several years. In these times, different segments of the Bazaar was restored, new sections were added and many buyers and sellers from all over Iran came here. Naser Al Din Shah, the Fourth Qajar King, ordered the construction of a portal that today is known as Grand Bazar. Without a doubt, Naser Al din Shah was the man that made the most changes in the Bazaar. The changes that made the tradesmen so powerful, they could influence the political decisions of the governmental officials. Although the development of Bazaar helped with the financial situation of the country, it made the rulers less powerful. When the money was at the hand of a group of traders then they would want a saying in the political decisions that affected them as well. So the power the king gave them was used against him and later his son when the traders of Bazaar became the main supporters of the oppositional groups that wanted constitution and limitation of Monarchy’s power.

Tehran’s bazaar is one of the most important places of trading and selling goods in Iran, and it is an amazing fundamental and economical structure. A market that its main structure is a heritage of the Qajar era.

The current architecture of the grand bazaar is very complex, the winding corridors, the traditional ventilation system in the ceiling, the decorations and sections of the bazaar all can prove the magnificent architecture used to build this bazaar. The place wasn’t always this complex. Tehran bazaar was developed over time, for example parts of the market was roofed due to summer heat. These developments also took place in the service spaces so that cafe, gymnasium, baths, mosques and religious site were made. There were constantly new parts constructed and added to the old part in order to trade goods for individual buyers. Gradually, there were special arcades for different type of products in the marketplace. The new sectors had their own bath and mosque in a way that they could run their feasts, mourning ceremonies, and other occasions.

One of the most important parts of the Old Market is Sabze Meydan (the green square) in the northern part of the market that dates back to the Safavid period. In the Qajar era, by the order of Amir Kabir, fundamental changes were applied to this square. This is the central place for gatherings to celebrate religious, political and social occasions. The renovation and refurbishing plan for the grand bazaar has been started over years, numerous activities have been happening such as: floor lamps, structure-building, the porch of the dome and roof and the building.

The grand bazaar of Tehran is on top list of all the visitors that come to Tehran from abroad and even other cities of Tehran. A very crowded and alive place which can take you to old days of Tehran. Grand bazaar of Tehran offers visitors a chance to enjoy good food as well with various traditional cuisine restaurants and fast food. The food here may not be very cheap but it is definitely worth your money because you will receive good quality food. These restaurants, which some date back to more than 100 years ago, show the visitors what authentic Persian meal is. Even one of the oldest pizzeria in Tehran is located in this market.

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Photo by Parastoo.Atrsaei via Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0

Based on their location, Caravanserais are divided to those built inside city walls, those built outside city walls, and those built near the roads. Sa’d Al-Saltaneh Caravanserai is a city caravanserai, meaning it was built at the heart of the city. Naturally, the caravanserais placed inside cities are more than just place of rest for the passing travel groups and become an important place of trade. Therefore, they include different complementary sections such as shops, bathhouse, and mosque. Sa’d Al-Saltaneh is one of the biggest roofed caravanserai of Iran with an area of about 2.7 Hectare and 400 Hojreh or rooms that functioned as both a place of rest and a place of trade for the travelers, that is why the architecture of this caravanserai is so similar to a Bazaar.

Muhammad Bagher Khan Sa’d Al-Saltaneh Isfahani, the governor of Isfahan in the time of Naser Al Din Shah, ordered the construction of this caravanserai. It took four great master architects of the time two years to finish it. The caravanserai’s been built in the time of business flourishment between Iran and Russia, when trade spots were essential. However, after the World Wars, and when Russia was not financially stable, this caravanserai became unpopular, and its period of demise began.

Sa’d Al-Saltaneh is one of the biggest roofed caravanserai of Iran with an area of about 2.7 Hectare and 400 Hojreh or rooms that functioned as both a place of rest and a place of trade for the travelers, that is why the architecture of this caravanserai is so similar to a Bazaar.

The entrance to the place is possible through a portal that opens to the Imam Khomeini Street with magnificent decoration of bricks and tiles. The Caravanserai has 5 yards dividing the vast area into different sections. The main yard is surrounded from all sides with one story Hojreh or rooms that were made one meter above the yard level and reached through shallow stairs and an Iwans. The doors to the rooms were made of wood and sashed with color glasses. They are simple with dome ceiling and niches in the walls used for keeping and displaying goods. There are holes in the ceiling filled with color glasses that used to provide the necessary light of the Hojreh. The Iwans, stairs, and the rooms have stone pieces for the floor cover, but the yard itself lacked any covering.

West of the central yard, is the Negar Al-Saltaneh yard. This yard has two big Hojreh and two warehouses, and is linked to the Vazir Rast-e (a section of Bazaar). East of the main yard is the Sa’die Yard; there are two Iwans on North and South of the yard with different brick and tile work. On the Northeast of the yard, there is an arched vault with a higher roof in the center and two smaller one on either sides. The vault was connected to the street by a series of stairs. This yard has around 10 Hojreh and there was a Bath House on the North-East side of it as well.

South of the main yard is where the most important section of the Caravanserai is located, the Charsough. Charsough literary means four bazaars, and refers to a place where the 4 main paths of a bazaar or a caravanserai meet each other.

Sa’d Al-Saltaneh Charsough has 4 half-dome with decoration common to these constructs. The West section leads to Qeysarieh and then to the Vazir Rast-e. After the World War and then the recession that followed, the rooms of this caravanserai were sold as independent shops, warehouses and factories. The rest were left unsupervised which led to their destruction. For a time, the place was turned to a Flour Factory and then to Wood Carving Factory. There was even a time that the shop owners set fire to their shops to get compensation money from insurance companies.

The place was registered as a National Heritage in 1937 as part of the Qazvin Grand Bazar but later, in 1998, it was registered separately. With government’s emphasis on natural and cultural heritages in the last two decades, the caravanserai came to attention, and the cultural heritage organization with the help of local organizations, assigned a budget for the restoration of the place.  The caravanserai was restored in recent years, and now is used as a shop center.

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The historic square and complex known as Amir Chakhmaq is perhaps the highlight of Yazd located in one of the oldest neighborhoods of the city. Amir Jalal Al Din Chakhmaq, a general and ruler of the Timurid era, was assigned as the governor of Yazd. With the help of his wife Fatemeh Khatoun, he ordered the establishment of a series of constructs that included the mentioned square, a bathhouse, a caravanserai, a monastery, a water well, and a mosque.

The complex was known with the same name in the Safavid era too; when Shah Abbas ordered parts of it to be restored; namely, four souks built on the caravanserai. In the 18th century, the square in front of the mosque and the facade of the bazaar were turned into a gathering place. We know that the place could not have had a religious function back then, because the building of religious gathering centers began in the Safavid era and continued afterwards. It is commonly believed that the square turned into a religious center in the 18th century and a Tekyeh, or the religious center was built on the façade of the bazaar at that time. The inscription of the place proves that it is about 130 years old.

In the 18th century, the square in front of the mosque and the facade of the bazaar were turned into a gathering place.

In the eastern part of the square there is a bazaar that locals call Haji Qanbar which takes its name from Haji Qanbar Jahanshahi, a person that was assigned as the governor of Yazd by Jahanshah Kara Koyunlu. The Kara Koyunlu that literary means the owners of black ships were a Turkman tribe based in north-west of Iran. They used to be under the control of Timurid rulers but their indomitable nature didn’t accept being ruled by others and soon they declared independence, starting their own kingdom

Another significant thing regarding this square is its Nakhl. Nakhl is a wooden object made in different sizes and used as a symbol of a martyr’s coffin. It is also known to represent a cradle and refers to the innocence of the martyr and the life of that person in heaven. Since it has the shape of a tree, it came to be known as Nakhl or palm but in reality it is the representation of Sarv or cedar that is the symbol of resistance and is known to stand as the symbol of Iran. The Nakhl of Yazd is the biggest Nakhl of the country known as Heidaries Nakhl. On the annual anniversary of Imam Hossein’s martyrdom (the third Shia Imam) the Nakhl is moved around by more than 100 men. With an estimation of 450 years of age that dates back to the Safavid Era, the Nakhl is known to be one of the oldest such structures in Iran.

Another significant thing regarding this square is its Nakhl. Nakhl is a wooden object made in different sizes and used as a symbol of a martyr’s coffin.

The Amir Chakhmaq Tekieh was registered as a national heritage in 1951 followed by the Amir Chakhmaq mosque, registered 11 years later. Later the whole complex that included the square, the bazaar, the tekyeh and the mosque were registered as one.

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