Tomb of Ferdowsi
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| Coordinates | 36°29′10″N 59°31′03″E / 36.48611°N 59.51750°ECoordinates: 36°29′10″N 59°31′03″E / 36.48611°N 59.51750°E |
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| Location | Tus, 12th Mashhad district, Iran |
| Designer | Society for the National Heritage of Iran |
| Completion date | 1934 |
| Dedicated to | Ferdowsi |
Tomb of Ferdowsi (Persian: آرامگاه فردوسی) is a tomb complex composed of a white marble base, and a decorative edifice erected in honor of this Persian poet located in Tus, Iran, in Razavi Khorasan province. It was built in the early 1930s, under the Reza Shah, and uses mainly elements of Achaemenid architecture. The construction of the mausoleum as well as its aesthetic design is a reflection of the cultural, and geo-political status of Iran at the time. This article delves into the architecture of the tomb and its influences.
Ferdowsi, the influential Persian poet and author of the Persian epic, Shahnameh died in 1020 A.D. in the Tus, Iran, Iran (Persia) in the same city that he was born in. For all his literary contribution Ferdowsi was not recognized during his life. It was only after his death that his poems won him admiration. For hundreds of years, his resting place was nothing more than a minor dome-shrine erected by a Ghaznavid ruler of Khorasan, without any permanent edifice in place in the garden of his house where Ferdowsi's daughter had originally buried him. In the beginning years of twentieth century Iran started to realize his critical role in defining identity of Iran.
It was not until 1934 that the Iranian government then under the control of Reza Shah, first king of the Pahlavi dynasty recognized the cultural and literary value of Ferdowsi and erected a permanent tomb in his honor. A Millenary celebration was also held for the poet inviting scholars from Soviet Tajikistan, India, Armenia, and Europe (Germany, France, England, etc.) which led to funds mainly from Parsi scholars' donations that led to building of a statue for the poet at his tomb site. The Pahlavi family used Ferdowsi as a vector to advance Iran's cultural prestige but in doing so nearly cost Ferdowsi his tomb since after the Islamic revolution frustrations with the Shah of Iran nearly led to destruction of Ferdowsi's tomb by the revolutionaries.
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