Ghazan Mausoleum
The Ghazan Mausoleum, also known as Gunbad-i 'Âlî and the Shanb-e Ghazan, was a mausoleum complex built by Ghazan in the suburbs of his capital of Tabriz, in the province of East Azerbaijan, Iran. The structure was believed to be completed between 1295 and 1304 CE, in the Ilkhanid style. It was the first Muslim tomb to be built by an Ilkhanid ruler, who hitherto were buried in secret natural locations. Subsequently demolished, most likely during the 17th century, the area of this former monument is now known as Shanb Ghazan.
Structure
The building was an expansion of construction started by his father Arghun in the Tabriz suburb of Sham. It became a mosque-mausoleum vaqf complex, containing religious and charitable institutions in addition to the royal mausoleum, almost forming a separate "pastoral and mausoleum city", where nomads and sedentary people could interact.The area around the mausoleum soon became urbanized, and came to be called "Ghazaniya". The mausoleum is no longer extant, except as large tumulus, and all original buildings have disappeared.
Literary accounts
The building of the mausoleum was reported in the Jami' al-tavārīkh: "He constructed another city larger than Old Tabriz at a place called Shamb or Sham where he built a pious foundation surrounded by many gardens and parks. This was called Ghazaniyya. Merchants from Rūm and Europe had their goods inspected there. To avoid bad feeling, the tamghachi there were the same as those of Tabriz."The author Tusi, visiting Tabriz at the time of Jahan Shah, marvelled at the beauty of the dome of the mausoleum. Ibn Battuta also visited the mausoleum: "We were lodged in a place called Shām where the tomb of Ghāzān … is located. Adjacent to this tomb is a madrasa and a khanaqah where travellers are fed".