A neglected place, a photo from Esfahan, East

Photographer's Note

After travelling through Turkey in the summer of 1970 my friend and I spent some time in Iran, where the highlight was a few days in Esfahan.

Today's main photo was taken on our first morning. Immediately after breakfast we walked straight to this mosque, part of a large madrasa, religious school, called Chahar Bagh ("Four gardens"), built around the year 1700. I liked its elegant style very much, and there were hardly any other tourists.

Trying to identify this building only by searching the web for famous mosques of Esfahan, I was rather bewildered. I couldn't find any photo showing a similar view. But in 1970 I had been wise enough to write a diary, so the problem was quickly solved.

The Map: view will show you this place. The little yellow man will guide you into the courtyard with the pool surrounded by the buildings of the madrasa.

I decided to call this a "neglected place" in Esfahan, because looking through more than 300 TE photos from the city, going back ten years, I couldn't find even one single photo of the Chahar Bagh.

One WS shows a better known faзade in Esfahan, the other a characteristic detail. All photos were scanned from Agfacolor CT18 slides.

pajaran, Fis2, aliabazari, ChrisJ, Royaldevon, pierrefonds, jhm, ikeharel, ktanska, mehrdad-t, jean113, COSTANTINO, mcmtanyel, jemaflor, PaulVDV, adramad, clic, worldcitizen has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

Silvio1953 (223027) 2022-01-12 0:32

Ciao Gert, great view of lovely nadrasa, excellent clarity, wonderful colors, splendid light and fine details, very well done, my friend, ciao Silvio

pajaran (117137) 2022-01-12 0:43

Pozdrav.

lep pogld, interesantan tekst ...
Lepo mesto i arhitektura, dobro pokazano sa lepim bojama, konrastom i perspektivom.
Dobar rad sa lepim fotografijama u radionici.
lepi detalji na fasadi.
Dobar rad skeniranjem slajdova.
lepo secanje.
Lepa Dzamija i minareti.

Zelim vam lep i uspesan dan, sve najbolje.
Paja

Fis2 (172023) 2022-01-12 0:45

Witaj Gert!
This building is impressive.
I like dome and towers.
Mosaics are unique!
Good POV, colors and light.
TFS.
Good morning.
Krzysztof

emka (158932) 2022-01-12 1:58

Hello Gert,

The decoration of the dome reminds me of the Blue Mosque of Yerevan. Nice facade and minarets, typical for Iranian architecture. I looked at the map, it is near the way from Chehel Satoon to the Si O Se Pol bridge, so I probably went nearby. But it was after sunset and I didn't notice it. Besides, there is so much to see in Esfahan, I had no time for all the interesting places. I still have a lot of pictures from there, maybe you will inspire me.
Nice also Workshops. Of course, I was in Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque.

Best regards

MAlgo

aliabazari (23335) 2022-01-12 2:29

Hi dear friend Gert
A beautiful view of architecture. It feels nice to look at images recorded with negative slides. You have portrayed this building well. Good sharpness and excellent exposure. Good text. Thanks for sharing

ChrisJ (172436) 2022-01-12 2:31

Hi Gert

I sometimes have the same problem identifying photos I look 5 or more years ago, made worse because I did not keep a diary. But usually I can quickly work out what is was on internet or even posting it here on Trekearth, where other photographers are quickly able to identify it. A beautiful mosque with ornate and colourful tiling and an attractive fg fountain. Tfs!

Royaldevon (86520) 2022-01-12 2:51

Hello Gert,

How interesting. It is easy to see that your w/s is an extended view of the one you posted many years ago. As often happens, I could only see one female amongst many males, in the shot.

I am always thrilled by these mosques and palaces. The decorative details are truly amazing! They put colours together which would never have been taught in our art lessons, and yet they work!
Even in 1970, if you had visited an important, religious building in the U.K., I feel sure you would have encountered many tourists!

You have done so well to scan these slides and obtain the colours and details shown. They are a wonderful record of our rapidly changing world!

Have a good day,
Bev :-)

pierrefonds (115624) 2022-01-12 4:55

Hi Gert,

The trees are framing well the building. The point of view is showing the details of the Chahar Bagh. The light is giving good colors output. Have a nice day.

Pierre

jhm (211738) 2022-01-12 6:03

Hello Gert,

Of course has the sun on the dome her consequenties
But the minaretten be spared.
You did excellent addition the people for the scale
Also colours and sharpness make your picture very attractive.
Perfect presentation.
Very well done, TFS.

Best regards,
John.

ikeharel (114691) 2022-01-12 6:29

Blue tiles work, superbly clear in sight, Gert, even as some harsh light prevailed from above.
Though it was an old photo scanned, the attractive architecture design well shown here.
Good afternoon,
Ike

lousat (140046) 2022-01-12 9:37

Hi Gert,you did a difficult job looking for the same place on the web in an attempt to identify it, so now I only buy cameras with GPS..ahhaa..3 beautiful photos of a past world and not corrupted by tourism, the architectural style is perfectly reminiscent of mosques Uzbeks and in fact we are not very distant geographically. Have a nice evening and thanks,Luciano

jmdias (116579) 2022-01-12 9:42

gert

an amazing architecture, the dome has patterns similar with the carpets. the tiles in WS are amazing and the other walls covered with blue tiles give us a notion of the Persian art.
take care

jorge

ktanska (45098) 2022-01-12 10:08

Hej Gert,
Wonderful view of this mosque. It would be hard to guess the size without people in front of it. I couldn't have guessed this is from 1970. The place is obviously timeless, but picture quality gives it much newer impression.
Kari

mehrdad-t (4812) 2022-01-12 11:25

Hello,
Take a look at an old photo from 1970.
Thank you for your theoretical accuracy.

jean113 (28321) 2022-01-12 11:32

Hello Gert, a classic shot of the entrance to this mosque. I am surprised that you were unable to identify it easily.
A bonus, a lady wearing red!
Subtle reflections on the pool, it makes a good foreground feature.
Three good shots, excellent scanning as ever.
Kind regards, Jean.

COSTANTINO (117884) 2022-01-12 11:46

Hello dear friend
have a nice new day
you are right about the date...
I cannot understand what happened
after the uploading of my photo...
this photo was taken when I was
at Luxembourg from 5th of November till
234rd of November...thanks for the notice...
your photo is interesting
and I like the presentation
of the mosque
regards
Costantino

GyurMaster (25049) 2022-01-12 13:10

Dear Gert,

I like the idea that digging up your archive lead to the consequence that a neglected place was put on the map again. Its a nice photo and the WS are good too!

Best Wishes,
Gy.

ifege (49539) 2022-01-12 19:39

Hi Gert
3 good photos showing the Persian use of ceramic finishes. It is interesting to see the different styled minarets to those in Uzbekistan.
cheers
Ian

mcmtanyel (69310) 2022-01-12 20:17

Hello Gert,
Imagine that, a photo taken in secular Iran during the reign of the Shah finding the light of day in 2022. The mosque is very pretty.
Regards,
MT

PaulVDV (63530) 2022-01-13 8:07

Hello Gert,
Whether I have visited this mosque and madrassa, I cannot say for sure. It looks very familiar in your photo but I could be wrong. My slides of that time are stored deep. Fortunately, digital photography was invented with which all photos taken in later years are available very quickly.
I found Esfahan a very interesting city but my best memories of Iran go to Shiraz.
Your main photo is well composed and nicely framed with the trees. Wonderful tiles on the dome, the entrance facade and the minarets.
These photos date from the time when a lady could appear in public without a headscarf.
Best regards, Paul

adramad (73484) 2022-01-14 9:35

Hi Gert.
Masterful composition with this beautiful mosque, with a high value in its tilework, of which we can see a detail with the blue and yellow that is the most spectacular.
Optimal light, sharpness and color.
Very well done. I love it.
Enjoy the weekend.
Very best regards.
Luis.

clic (76) 2022-01-14 12:17

Hallo Gert
Have you been guided by the calls to prayer broadcasted from one of these minarets at dawn to reach this humble mosque!
Despite a shaded frontage, it reveals a with great cropping symmetry lot of artistry in Mosaics and architectural design.
I appreciate the true color rendering and your density tweaks before the final scan.
Basta halsningar

kasianowak (17676) 2022-01-16 5:34

Truly neglected by the tourism industry. I haven't been there, even Malgo didn't take a photo, otherwise yours wouldn't be the first one on TE! What I like the most about this image is the little lady in red, just in the right place. Her top contrasts nicely with the ubiquitous turquoise.
PS. Thank you for your kind comments about my last photo and my writing - it means a lot coming from you! I'd love to change my profession, I even have a degree that could lead to journalism. Sadly, it's much too late now and it would have to remain a hobby.

worldcitizen (16234) 2022-01-23 13:23

Hello Gert,
The designs on this mosque are so intricate, and the colors are beautiful. The people walking in the foreground show just how large it is, too. It must have been magical to see buildings like this in person. Take care!