Takht-e Soleyman

Taḵt-e Solaymān

Iran · West Azerbaijan

Temple / ritual siteUnknownUNESCO · 2003
Approximate period1,000 BCE — 1,300 CESasanian and Ilkhanid periods; traces of earlier settlement See on the map ↓

In brief

The area surrounding a natural lake is an important Sasanian Zoroastrian sacred center. Excavations by German and Iranian teams in 1959-1978 revealed the architecture of the fire temple and the Ilkhanid palace built later.

What was found?

  • 1Adur Guşnasp fire temple

    The remains of the temple, with its central domed space and surrounding corridors, have been uncovered. Inscribed seal impressions support the identification of the site as the sacred center of Adur Guşnasp.

  • 2Inscribed clay seal impressions

    Pieces of clay used to seal documents have been found. According to researchers, the room in which they were found together was used as an archive for scribal affairs and civil administration.

  • 3Ilkhanid palace

    The palace remains show that the former sacred site was reorganized during the Ilkhanid period. Large iwans and halls are parts of this new use.

  • 4Glazed architectural tiles

    Wall tiles, together with stucco decoration and paintings, are among the palace's principal decorations. They complemented the appearance of the large iwans and halls in particular.

  • 5Tile production kilns

    Kilns that produced at least some of the glazed wall tiles have been found in the northern part of the site. They document the connection between palace construction and local production.

What does it point to?

The temple and seal impressions indicate that worship and administrative affairs were conducted together here. The Ilkhanid palace and production kilns show the transformation of an ancient sacred center into a new royal space.

What did it teach us?

  1. The seal impressions supported the identification of the sacred site with written evidence.
  2. According to researchers, the document seals showed that Sasanian religious officials also undertook civil administrative duties.
  3. Revealed that some of the tiles decorating the Ilkhanid palace were produced at the site.

Images

Takhte Soleyman (5)
Elaheabed · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Record

Culture
Sasanians; Ilkhanids
First modern dig
1959
Coordinates
36.6039°, 47.2350°

Sources

  1. whc.unesco.org
  2. iranicaonline.org
  3. Encyclopaedia Iranica — Taht-ı Süleyman

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12.000

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