Located in the historical center of Isfahan, the Masjed-

e Jame (‘Friday mosque’) can be seen as a stunning

illustration of the evolution of mosque architecture

over twelve centuries, starting in 841 AD. It is

the oldest preserved edifice of its type in Iran and a

prototype for later mosque designs throughout Central

Asia which has been a UNESCO World Heritage

Site since 2012.

Covering more than 20,000 m2, the complex is also

the first Islamic building that adapted the four-courtyard

layout of Sassanid palaces to Islamic religious

architecture. Its double-shelled ribbed domes represent

an architectural innovation that inspired builders

throughout the region. The site also features

remarkable decorative details representative of stylistic

developments over more than a thousand years

of Islamic art. The prototype character is well illustrated

in the earliest double-shell ribbed Nezam al-

Molk dome, the first use of the four portico (Chahar

Ayvān) typology in Islamic architecture, as well as

the textbook character of the Masjed-e Jame’ as a

compilation of Islamic architectural styles.

The Masjed-e Jame’ of Isfahan is an outstanding example

of innovation in architectural adaptation and

technology applied during the restoration and expansion

of an earlier mosque complex during the Seljuq

era, which has been further enlarged during later Islamic

periods by addition of high-quality extensions