Karim Khan Citadel is a royal fort that used to house one of the most popular kings of Zand Era, Karim Khan. The citadel was made in 18th century and is located in the Northeast of Shiraz, Fars Province. The masters of different arts and crafts were summoned to court to make the citadel using the best materials possible. The materials that some were imported from other cities and countries.

The Karim Khan Square has three sections. First, the political section where the pavilion and court were located. Second, the economic section where the bazaar was located. Third, the military section where the soldiers lived and practiced military related crafts. In this square, the citadel, as the residence of the king and his throne, was the heart of the city. In its making the military purpose and the residential purpose of the place was considered and it was designed in a way to be suitable for both functions. The outer curtain has high walls with holes in different size, used by the archers and shooters. The Hashti of the place, the octagonal room that is made immediately after the entrance, has a door that opens to the stable, a door that lead to the roof, and a door that leads to the inside of the citadel. There are some stands in the Hashti that were used for sitting while visitors waited to enter the place.

There are four small yard under watchtowers that were used by the service staffs except one that was connected to the Hashti and was used for the goods. The watchtowers had three floors and open to the mentioned yards. The stairs that start from the yard lead to the second floor and then third floor so there is no connecting way from the first to the second floor. One of these yards is the way of reaching the bathhouse, the difficulty of accessing this publicly used place made the constructors to add a door that is directly connected to the citadel’s main yard. This bathhouse, like all other traditional bathhouses of Iran has different sections such as Sarbineh, Garmkhaneh, and Khazineh.

Karim Khan Citadel is a square shaped fort with a 15 m watchtower on each corner of it. Between the Northern, Southern, and Western side of the place there is a vast iwan and two rooms known as Sedari. Each of the mentioned iwans have two stone pillars about 8-9 m tall and following the tradition of Zand architecture, face a small and shallow pool. On Eastern side of the citadel, the main gate is placed. Above the gate there is a scene of Shah Nameh, from the section that Rostam is fighting Diveh Sefid (White Demon). King’s private bathhouse and Guard’s Section is made behind this wall. The decorations of interior include frames, marble dados from Yazd and Tabriz, huge Mirrors from Russia, Turkey and Europe. The paintings of the rooms were done with gold, lapis lazuli, and natural colors adorning arabesque and floral patterns.

When Zand Dynasty was overruled and Qajars took the throne, the citadel was given to the local ruler of Fars Province that was assigned by the Qajar King. The first Qajar king detested the Zand ruler drastically, his followers wanting the king’s favor imitated this hatred. As a result, many Zand constructs were damaged, this citadel wasn’t an exception as well, nearly all tiles and paintings of the place were axed covered with a layer of stucco where new paintings were made over them. Later, a section of the Zand decorations was extracted to be displayed for the visitors.

For a time, in Pahlavi’s Era, the citadel was used as a prison, for this function the whole interior was covered with a layer of stucco hiding both the Qajar and the Zand paintings. The halls and massive chambers were divided and turned into cells. In 1971, the citadel was given to the Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization of Iran that restored and reconstructed the citadel. The restoration team did their best to keep the authenticity of the place and reduce the applied changes. After the restorations were over, the citadel was registered as a National Heritage.

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Khaje Shams El Din Muhammad, also known as Lesan Ol Gheib or Hafez is a renowned Lyric Poet of Iran that lived in 14^th century in Shiraz. He lost his father even before he was born and was sent to learn different sciences from an early age. He was soon captivated by mysticism; today he is known for his knowledge of mysticism and its reflection in his poetry. Hafez has memorized the whole holly book of Quran that is the reason he came to be called Hafez, which literary means the keeper or preserver.

Hafez Mausoleum, Ceiling Decoration of Tomb – Shiraz, Fars Province

When Zands came to throne, and when Shiraz became the Capital of Iran, Karim khan, the Zand ruler, ordered the construction of a mausoleum for the famous poet. The structure of this mausoleum included an Iwan with four strong pillars each made from a one-piece stone. There were two small rooms on either side of the Iwan, with the Mausoleum being on the northern side, overlooking an outstanding garden. By the order of Zand king, a stone was made to be used as the tombstone of the great poem and some lines of his poetry were carved on it.

Karim khan, the Zand ruler, ordered the construction of a mausoleum for the famous poet. The structure of this mausoleum included an Iwan with four strong pillars each made from a one-piece stone.

The marble tombstone was adorned with two of Hafez Ghazals (Lyrics) using the Calligraphy of Haj Aghasi Beyg Afshar. The only thing that remains from the Zand construct is this tombstone. The importance of the great poet among Iranian has made the mausoleum to be a priority of all rulers that tried to keep it from damage and destruction. An attention that sometimes acted as a disadvantage since many rulers destroyed the mausoleum to build one of their own. The mausoleum was restored by the Qajar rulers which was again destroyed and nothing remains of it today.

The current monument was designed by the famous French Architect, André Godard inspired by the architecture of Zand Dynasty. The structure is a platform with eight pillars made of one-piece stones and with a domed ceiling covered in Tilework. The place is one of the main attractions of Shiraz for the beauty of its structure, Hafez place among Iranian and the pleasant atmosphere that is felt there.

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