INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
TEHRAN - This 15th-century domed structure, better known as Zendan-e Iskandar (Alexanders Prison), derives its name from a referral in a
Hafez poem and legends surrounding its origins.According to folklore, a deep well in its courtyard was constructed by Alexander the Great
and utilized as a dungeon.Situated in the heart of Yazds historic Fahadan area, this monolith lies close to the eleventh-century Davazdeh
The name Zendan-e Iskandar is connected to the tale of Alexander developing a castle in this area to send to prison captive princes
In some literary works, Yazd itself is described as Zendan-e Iskandar.The mausoleum, located in the southeast corner, is linked to the yard
and primary iwan through 2 entrances
It is a square structure, 8.8 meters per side, supported by thick walls to bear the weight of its 18-meter-high dome
The mausoleums popular dome controls both the yard and the surrounding skyline.Constructed mainly of mud brick, with baked brick used for
the domes external shell, the building includes a decorative three-tier muqarnas cornice in the octagonal zone of shift
While the courtyard and surrounding spaces do not have decoration, the burial place chambers interior is adorned with floriated Kufic
engravings and painted plaster vegetal themes, quality of the Muzaffarid period.Historical accounts recommend the structure and its
adjoining buildings were part of the Madarasa Ziaiyya, a religious school commissioned in the late 13th century throughout the Il-Khanid age
by Ziya al-Din Husayn-e Razi and his family
According to the Tarikh-e Jadid-e Yazd (The New History of Yazd), the school featured a grand portal with towering minarets and was
surrounded by luxurious mansions equipped with high wind catchers (badgirs)
As noted by Iraj Afshar, the precise identification of the structure as Madarasa Ziaiyya stays unpredictable due to the absence of
epigraphic evidence.The existing structure follows a typical 13th-14th century madrasa layout, with a rectangle-shaped yard flanked by 3
The bigger western iwan is accompanied by smaller sized northern and southern iwans, each surrounding to rectilinear cells of varying
depthslikely the result of later modifications
At the yards center lies a payab, an underground chamber providing access to the qanat (underground water channel) below the
building.Zindan-e Iskandar functioned as a website for oil production up until the 1970s and fell into disrepair before its repair by the
National Heritage Organization of Iran in the 1980s
Ever since, it has actually become a tourist attraction.A dont-miss destinationIn July 2017, Yazds historic core was designated a UNESCO
Visitors frequently explain Yazd as a must-see destination, commemorated for its mudbrick houses with ingenious wind catchers (badgirs),
climatic alleys, and various Islamic and Iranian monoliths that define its striking cityscape.Cultural heritage experts view Yazd as a
testimony to the resourcefulness of its inhabitants in adjusting to desert conditions
The citys historical core is a treasure trove of mudbrick homes, marketplaces, bathhouses, water cisterns, mosques, synagogues, Zoroastrian
temples, and ancient gardens
Yazds harmonious coexistence of Islam, Judaism, and Zoroastrianism further enhances its cultural and spiritual heritage.AM
