Afterglow of Mongol Empire - Beautiful Iran 6

The great turquoise -blue dome  in Soltaniyeh

We got into a tour bus and left Hamadan for Zanjan, which is 200 km north of Hamadan in a straight line, but 300 km along the highway. Our bus ran through the hilly areas in the Zagros Mountains, with undulating wheat field or green meadow on both sides of the road. Out of the window I happened to see flat houses made of brick, flocks of sheep, or fields dotted with yellow rape blossoms. 

At noon, we stopped at a local restaurant along the road and took Chelo kabab (rice with grilled meat) for lunch. The restaurant owner seemed not to have expected so many guests as 13 Japanese with our Iranian guide and bus driver. But he was clever enough to invite us to the kitchen to show how he cooked kabab; Kabab koobideh. The lamb meat was already minced, seasoned, and skewered. He grilled lots of meat over a stove. We enjoyed flare-up during cooking and savory smell filling the kitchen.

The meal was served with grilled tomato and butter, but butter remained frozen, for it was cold on the highlands more than 1500 m above sea level. We warmed it on the side of a heater near the entrance. I associated it with the winter life there. 

When we travel in the Middle East or Central Asia, we come across various types of kabab or kebab. That Chelo Kabab is one of the best kebabs I have ever eaten. The combination of steamed rice and grilled meat is very tasty. “Khoshmazas,” I said so to the owner in Farsi, when we left. He cracked a big smile. 

I imagine Chelo Kabab is a cross-cultural product between normads and oasis people, pasturing and farming lives. Nomads moved from place to place in the Iranian plateau seeking pasture for sheep or goats. They actually depended on oasis people for rice, wheat, or other agricultural food. They traded sheep or dairy products for them. Some nomads settled down at oases to start farming. New cuisine would have developed through such communications in a peaceful time. 

We restarted bus tour after lunch. Soon the blue sky disappeared under the thick black clouds. It began raining and soon changed into a thunderstorm. A strong wind blew and swayed our bus. Our tour guide Mr. Musa consoled us saying, “The weather in the mountains is very temperamental.”

He was right. One hour later it stopped raining, when we arrived at Soltaniyeh. I could plainly see the great turquoise-blue dome of the mosque through the window still wet with raindrops. 

Soltaniyeh, some 240 km north-west of Tehran, used to be the capital of Mongolian Ilkhanate Empire (1256-1335). It was listed as one of the World Heritage Sites of UNESCO in 2005.

We know the name Genghis Khan (1162-1227), founder and Great Khan of the Mongol Empire. In the same period, Iran was under the Khwarazmian Empire (1077-1231). The Mongol forces under Genghis Khan not only conquered the empire but also massacred the residents, even women and children.

Mr. Musa said to me, “We have got some trauma of Mongol. When I was a child and disobeyed my parents, they threatened me by saying ‘Mongolian soldiers are coming!’”

 Interestingly we had the same old saying to put a check on children for Mongol had attacked Kushu region of West Japan twice in the late 13th century.

The Ilkhanate Empire was a breakaway state of the Mongol Empire, which was founded by Hulagu Khan, grandson of Genghis Khan. His descendants ruled Persia for the next 80 years. It is said that Mongols were very tolerant of religions. I imagine that their early generations in wartime were very realistic, so realistic that they were never interested in religious happiness. However, the later generations in peaceful time dreamed of the next life in religions.

The Ilkhans adopted Islam as state religion in 1295 when Oljeitu (1280-1316) was the eighth ruler. Oljeitu was a highly religious person, different from Genghis khan or hulagu Khan. His name Oljeitu means “blessed” in the Mogolian language. He was baptized as a Christian in his childhood, and converted to Buddhism, then to Sunni Islam, and finally to Shi’a Islam. He changed his first name to Muhammad with Khodabandeh which means “man of God.”

Oljeitu was not a cruel conquerer, but a diplomat and promoter of trade, especially with Europe. He sent a Mongol embassy to the French king Philip IV, Pope Clement V, and Edward I of England in 1305. He gave trading rights to the Venetian merchants in 1306. That year Oljeitu founded the city of Soltaniyeh. During his reign, it was the most magnificent and prosperous city. 

Today the great dome of the mosque standing out in Soltaniyeh's ruins is the Mausoleum of Oljeitu. The building was octagonal. We entered it. The inside was under renovation. We saw a huge scaffold towering to the ceiling of the dome. I was surprised at how high the dome was. Mr. Musa explained, “It was 49 meters. The weight of the dome was estimated 200 tons. How amazing the technology of construction at that time is!” 

Inside of the dome

We climbed upstairs, stepped into the cloister, and stood on the observation deck. I found the dome stood in the middle of a rural village surrounded by fields and snowy mountains. It seems certain that the mausoleum would had looked magnificent from a distant place.

The landscape from the observation deck of the dome

I visited the Taj Mahal in Agra, India three years ago. It was a white marble mausoleum built by Mugal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal in the 17th century. The building is an unequal octagon with an onion-shaped dome, whose height is some 35 m, and four minarets around 40 m tall. I think that the Taj Mahal took over some design traditions of the dome of Soltaniyeh.

Most of the exterior decoration was lost, but the interior retained pieces of beautiful faience and patterns in mosaic on the walls, which had been repeatedly repaired. I found small labels pasted to the repaired parts. Each label had some description with the date of an earthquake on it. 

Iran is a country with frequent earthquakes such as Japan. Each big earthquake caused cracks in the building. The people have repaired them to keep the legacy of Mongol alive.