Iran
Meidan Emam, Esfahan
Meidan Emam, Esfahan is one of the largest city squares in the world.
It was used in Persian socio-cultural life (for parades, celebrations and public executions) during the Safavid era. The square is surrounded by a homogenous ensemble of important historical buildings that were built over a short time span, such as the Shah Mosque, Ali Qapu Palace, Sheikh Lotf Allah Mosque and the Isfahan Grand Bazaar.
Community Perspective: “The darling of the Iranian tourism industry”. The best views of the square overall are to be had from the balcony of the Ali Qapu Palace, while the Emam or Shah Mosque is the square’s most striking component and the Sheik Lotfallah Mosque has a beautiful interior.
Site Info
Official Information
- Full Name
- Meidan Emam, Esfahan (ID: 115)
- Country
- Iran
- Status
-
Inscribed 1979
Site history
History of Meidan Emam, Esfahan
- 1979: Inscribed
- Inscribed
- WHS Type
- Cultural
- Criteria
- i
- v
- vi
Links
- UNESCO
- whc.unesco.org
All Links
UNESCO.org
- whc.unesco.org — whc.unesco.org/
Related Resources
- visitiran.ir — Visit Iran
News Article
- July 19, 2022 bbc.com — Isfahan's Shah Mosque: iconic Iranian site damaged in restoration
- Sept. 29, 2009 tehrantimes.com — Restorations are gradually resulting in a historic destruction at Isfahan
- Sept. 23, 2006 mehrnews.ir — Modification of Jahan-Nama Tower falls short of UNESCO regulations
Community Information
- Community Category
- Religious structure: Islamic
Travel Information
Recent Connections
View all (25) .Connections of Meidan Emam, Esfahan
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- World Heritage Process
- Religion and Belief
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News
- bbc.com 07/19/2022
- Isfahan's Shah Mosque: iconic Iran…
- tehrantimes.com 09/29/2009
- Restorations are gradually resulti…
- mehrnews.ir 09/23/2006
- Modification of Jahan-Nama Tower f…
Recent Visitors
Visitors of Meidan Emam, Esfahan
- AC
- Adrian Turtschi
- Afshin Iranpour
- Alexander Barabanov
- Alexander Lehmann
- Alexander Parsons
- alexandrcfif
- Alfons and Riki Verstraeten
- Ali Zingstra
- A. Mehmet Haksever
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- Eva Kisgyorgy
- Fan Yibo
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- Fmaiolo@yahoo.com
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- George Gdanski
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- Haining Guan
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Community Reviews
Show full reviews
I thought of reviewing an Iranian UNESCO World Heritage Site in light of Trump’s recent threat to the country’s cultural sites. Sheer insanity I thought, but thankfully, the Pentagon just completely ignored him as blasting cultural heritage sites constitutes a war crime. Date of Visit: December 2016.
Esfahan was the second city I visited during my backpacking trip to the country 3 years ago, and I truly enjoyed it. My first day in this city was spent in this square and the adjacent grand bazaar, taking heaps of photos and observing locals and tourists stroll, eat, shop, play and socialise. Meidan Emam is bounded in all sides by a 2-storey arcade, interrupted in the four cardinal directions by the following beautiful monuments and the Qeysarie gate of Esfahan’s grand bazaar:
- Ali Qapu Palace – as mentioned by Alexander, the view of the square from its balcony is stunning. From a casual traveler, I appreciate its beautiful ornamentation, design and architecture.
- Masjed-e Shah – the site’s UNESCO page mentions that it “remains the most celebrated example of the colorful architecture, which reached its high point in Iran under the Safavid dynasty”. At the time of my visit, scaffolding could be seen surrounding one side of the mosque’s dome. For some reason I could not recollect, it deterred me from going inside the mosque. Stupid me, I should’ve at least tried.
- Sheik Lotfallah Mosque - in terms of its interior, it is THE most beautiful mosque I …

The fact that the Meidan Emam was inscribed so early in the life of World Heritage is hardly a surprise; this square is the darling of the Iranian tourism industry, and rightly so. An interesting point to consider is this timing of the submission and acceptance of this site to the World Heritage List; the 1979 World Heritage Convention occurred in May, only a few months after the Islamic Revolution. The reference in the ICOMOS evaluation of 1979, and the other 1979 documents available on the UNESCO website, makes reference to the ‘Meidan-e Shah’, and the ‘Shah Mosque’, without any mention of the renaming of these components by the new regime. I guess the new Islamic Republic valued the prestige of the nomination enough to still accept it, though evidently with a name change, as the 1988 report makes no mention of the deposed shah. I am unsure of the precise nature of this process of naming; probably an unreported element of the 1979 convention?
The square, apart from the open space itself, has three main components. The obvious first stop is the Ali Qapu Palace, renowned more for its view of the square than for its own sake. This is unsurprising; while the palace has some nice ornamentation, especially on the top floor, the view is the real star here.
The Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque , directly opposite the palace, is unusual in that it has no courtyard or minaret, and comprises simply of a corridor and prayer room beneath …
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