Journal of Greater Khorasan

Journal of Greater Khorasan

Revision and comparative study of historical texts and archaeological evidence in Herat musalla complex

Document Type : تاریخ معماری خراسان بزرگ

Authors
1 Department of Archaeology of University of Mazandaran
2 Associate professor in Islamic Archaeology at Department of Archaeology of university of Mazandaran
Abstract
Herat has been one of the most important cities of Khorasan in most of the historical periods, but undoubtedly, the peak of its prosperity is related to the Timurid period.Herat Musalla complex is a collection of architectural structures, which was built during the era of Shahrukh and later during the time of Sultan Husayn Bayqara, As one of the key site of the Timurid era, this site has received less attention from researchers due to the lack of field observations and archaeological excavations. Now, one of the tools that can help authors in recreating Musalla structures is first-hand historical texts such as the works of historians and geographers. Therefore, the authors try to recreate the spaces of the Musalla architecture by examining documents, including historical sources, and also to match the information of the texts with archaeological evidence. The results of examining the sources and the limited archaeological evidence indicate that among the three mosque structures in Herat, Goharshad Madrasa is the only one that does not match the texts with the ancient evidence.
Keywords
Subjects

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  • Receive Date 15 October 2023
  • Revise Date 01 August 2024
  • Accept Date 24 January 2026