Comprising four storeys, including a large sunken courtyard with ablutions pool, an austere dome, tiled minarets and unusually lofty badgirs (windtowers), this decommissioned 19th-century mosque complex is famous for the symmetry of its design. The wooden front door is said to have as many studs as there are verses in the Quran, and the mud-brick walls are covered with Quranic inscriptions and mosaics. A fine portal and mihrab (niche indicating the direction of Mecca) at the rear is particularly noteworthy.
While the mosque has been decommissioned, the madraseh (school) in the sunken courtyard is still in use and women should avoid this area. Entrance is usually free; the only exception is during April and No Ruz, when a charge of IR20,000 per person is levied.
To the left of the mosque’s entrance is the Khajeh Taj ad-Din, the tomb of Ghotbs Kashani, a famous mystic of the Qajar period.
