PERSIAN GARDENS- TRANSITION FROM MESOPOTAMIAN AGE TO ISLAMIC TIMES.

ASSURBANIPAL AT A MEAL IN THE PARK OF KUYUNBJIK

“Everywhere,” he makes Socrates say to his pupils, “the Persian king is zealously cared for, so that he may find gardens wherever he goes; their name is Paradise, and they are full of all things fair and good that the earth can bring forth. It is here that he spends the greatest part of his time, except when the season forbids.”

The Persians made three types of garden, as did the Egyptians:

• palace gardens • tomb gardens

• domestic pleasure gardens

•love and their veneration for trees•the symbol of eternal life was a tree with a stream•tree-planting was a sacred occupation•evenness of their plantation•these paradises were first and foremost hunting-parks

•evolution of the Persian garden, when poetry is able to tell us of the wonderful love felt by this people for their flowers and their rose-gardens.•The groves about their tombs were very important to the ancient Persians

Some important traits

•Water symbolised life, as it was believed to be the source of life.

• Irrigation canals made cultivation possible.

•Parts of the Iranian plateau were under cultivation by 3,000 BC.

•Plants and trees symbolised deities.

• Ceramic representations of the world divided into four quarters with a pool of life at the centre date to 4,000 BC.

• An Akkadian king proclaimed himself King of the Four Quarters.

Pasargadae, plan based on archaeological evidence. This is the earliest example of the quadripartite ( Chahar- bagh) plan

•A reconstruction of Cyrus (or Cambyses) the Great's palace garden at Pasargadae c550 BC. •The paths are conjuctural.•Water channels define the space between two palaces. •There are small pavilions. •This is the earliest known remnant of what became the classical Persian garden.• It is likely to have been planted with cypress, pomegranate and cherry.

The plan is based on David Stronach's Pasargadae: a report on the excavations, (Oxford, 1978).

•Persia was conquered by the Arabs in the seventh century and deeply influenced by Islam thereafter.

•But Islamic gardens were deeply influenced by the Persian tradition of garden making.

•The Balkuwara Palace (or Bulkawara Palace) in Samara is very much part of the Persian tradition and had a quadripartite garden flanked by pavilions.

PERSIAN GARDEN- ISLAMIC STYLE

Classical Formal Casual

Public Hayat Meidan Park

Private Hayat Chahar Bagh Bagh

Styles:

The six primary styles of the Persian garden may be seen in the following table, which puts them in the context of their function and style.

•Trees and trellises largely feature as biotic shade; pavilions and walls are also structurally prominent in blocking the sun.

•Also related to the heat is the importance of water in the gardens.• A form of underground tunnel, below the water table, called a Qanat is used to irrigate the garden and its environs.• Well-like structures then connect to the Qanat, enabling the drawing of water.

•Trees were often planted in a ditch called a Jub, which prevented water evaporation and allowed the water to quickly access the tree roots.

•The Persian style often attempts to integrate that which is "indoors" with the "outdoors".

•Architectural elements such as vaulted arches between the outer and interior areas to open up the divide between them

In 711 A.D. the Syrian Arabs invaded Spain.

Arab influence in Spain

ALHAMBRA ,GRANADA,SPAIN

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HALL OF JUDGEMENT

HALL OF TWO SISTERS

Vaulting in the Hall of the Abencerrajes

Court of the Lions

Court of Myrtle

Hall of the Ambassadors

PERSIAN INFLUENCE…………EVOLUTION OF MUGHAL GARDENS IN INDIA

MUGHAL GARDENS

Common features of Persian gardens- that featured in all Mughal gardens.

•A high surrounding wall.•Straight channels of water, lined with tiles.•Bubbling fountains.•Trees for shade and fruit.•A Pavilion or gazebo.•Strong emphasis on flowers in beds and pots.

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The Shalimar Gardens in Srinagar, Indian administered Jammu and Kashmir, India during the summer

“ If there is a paradise on earth, it is this, it is this, it is this.

”The gardens were the inspiration for other gardens of the same name, notably the Shalimar Gardens in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan.Upon completion of the gardens, the emperor is said to have recited the famous Persian expression:

STRUCTURE OF THE GARDEN

Image:TajPlanMughalGardens.jpg

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360° panoramic view of the Chahar Bagh gardens

Walkways beside reflecting pool

Jai Mahal Palace, Jaipur

Mughal garden, Pinjore, Haryana

Chatri: (originally Persian for umbrella) a small, vaulted pavilion used in India for decorative purposes mostly in the articulation of roofs' corners.

Baradari: An Indian open-sided pavilion (literally, it means twelve-pillared, possibly in reference to the four walls of the pavilion pierced each by three doors).

Chadar: The Mughal equivalent of a shadirwan, a sloping, carved surface over which water flows.

Chabutra: A stone or a brick platform, usually situated at the intersection of two axes, be it two causeways or two water channels.

Jalis: Perforated stone or marble screen, usually carved in geometric forms.

SOME UNIQUE FEATURES OF A MUGHAL GARDEN

CHATRI

BARADARI

CHADAR

CHABUTRA

JALI

A Baradari combined with Chinikanas- small nisches on the wall for fragrant flowers in the morning and oil-lamps at night.

FORMS OF WATER FOUND IN ISLAMIC GARDENS

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