Iran - Andrew Burke [115]
At the bazaar’s northeast corner, the well-proportioned former Saheb Ul-Amr Mosque now houses a Quran Museum (Map; 527 2733; Madani St; admission IR3000; 8am-6.30pm Sat-Thu, 8am-1pm Fri). Its most intriguing exhibit is the scripture-covered under-shirt worn by Qajar monarchs during coronations.
Blue (Kabud) Mosque
Constructed in 1465, the Blue Mosque (Map; Imam Khomeini St; admission IR2000; 9am-7pm Sat-Thu, 9am-1pm Fri, earlier in winter) was among the most glorious buildings of its era. Once built, artists took a further 25 years to cover every surface with the blue majolica tiles and intricate calligraphy for which it’s nicknamed. It survived one of history’s worst-ever earthquakes (1727), but collapsed in a later quake (1773). Devastated Tabriz had better things to do than mend it and it lay as a pile of rubble till 1951, when reconstruction finally started. The brick superstructure is now complete, but only on the rear (main) entrance portal (which survived 1773) is there any hint of the original blue exterior. Inside is more blue with missing patterns laboriously painted onto many lower sections around the few remaining patches of original tiles.
A smaller domed chamber further from the entrance once served as a private mosque for the Qareh Koyunlu shahs. Steps lead down towards Jahan Shah’s tomb chamber but access would require some minor gymnastics.
The Khaqani garden outside, honouring 12th-century Azari-Persian poet Shirvani Khaqani, is a good place to meet English-speaking students.
AZARBAYJAN MUSEUM
The Azarbayjan Museum (Map; Imam Khomeini St; admission IR2000; 8am-2pm & 4-8pm Sat-Thu summer, 8am-12.30pm Fri, 8am-5pm winter) is 50m west of the Blue Mosque. Enter through a great brick portal with big wooden doors guarded by two stone rams. Ground-floor exhibits include finds from Hasanlu, a superb 3000-year-old copper helmet and curious stone ‘handbags’ from the 3rd millennium BC. Found near Kerman these were supposedly symbols of wealth once carried by provincial treasurers. The basement features Ahad Hossein’s powerful if disturbing sculptural allegories of life and war. The top floor displays a re-weave of the famous Chelsea carpet, reckoned to be one of the best ever made. The original is so-called because it was last sold on King’s Rd, Chelsea, some 50 years ago, ending up in London’s Victoria & Albert Museum.
Arg-e TabriZ
This huge brick edifice (Map; off Imam Khomeini St), an unmissable landmark, is a chunky remnant of Tabriz’s early-14th-century citadel (known as ‘the Ark’). Criminals were once executed by being hurled from the top of the citadel walls. Far-fetched local legend tells of one woman so punished who was miraculously saved by the parachute-like effect of her chador.
Ongoing construction of a stadium-sized Mosallah Mosque next door is reportedly undermining the Ark’s foundations and access is usually impossible.
CHURCHES
Tabriz has had a Christian community almost as long as there’ve been Christians. Near the bazaar, St Mary’s (Kalisa-ye Maryam-e Moqaddas; Map) is a 12th-century church mentioned by Marco Polo and once the seat of the regional archbishop. Behind high gates, the curious Anglican Church (Map; Walman St) has a tower of four diminishing cylinders. The relatively central Sarkis Church (Kalisa-ye Sarkis-e Moqaddas; Map; Kalisa Alley) serves the Armenian community. It’s hidden in a basketball court behind high white gates.
OTHER ATTRACTIONS
Central Tabriz
The 19th-century bathhouse, Nobar Hamam (Map; Imam Khomeini St), is usually locked but worth double-checking. Almost opposite, the German-designed Municipal Hall (Map; Shahrdari Sq) is a