Culture
Architecture
Mosques, bazaars, palaces and Persian gardens, from Persepolis to modern Tehran.
4 stories
Essay
Isfahan: a vocabulary of light
Three words, iwan, muqarnas and tile, explain much of what you see on Naqsh-e Jahan Square. 14 November 2026
Feature
Qanats, windcatchers and ice houses: engineering for a dry land
Much of Iran is dry. Builders answered with underground water channels, towers that catch the wind and cone-shaped stores for winter ice: low-tech systems that shaped whole cities. 14 November 2026
Feature
The Persian bazaar: a city within a city
A bazaar is a building, a market, a social network and a public space. Its covered passages and courtyards are some of the most important architecture in Iranian cities. 14 November 2026
Feature
The Persian garden: paradise with a water channel
A walled rectangle, four parts, running water and shade: an old design for a dry land, which gave English the word 'paradise'. 14 November 2026