Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
1 Ph.D. Candidates of Archaeology, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran (Correspond Author).
2 Department of Archaeology, Cultural Heritage and Tourism Research Institute (RICHT), Tehran, Iran.
Abstract
Tomb Street (Khiaban-Mazar) is described as a complex where the tombs are located on either side of a passageway. “Khiaban-e Herat” (Herat Street) is also a cemetery with tombs along its main axis, and it is one of the most unique and ancient examples of Mazar Street in Khorasan. This article aims to examine the process of early developments in Khiaban-Mazar-e Herat, study the evolution of Herat’s urban development during the Mongol-Ilkhanid era and compare it with the developments in Tabriz, the capital of Ilkhanid empire, analyze the similarities and differences between the developments in the two cities and finally evaluate the impacts that these urban changes have had on the expansion process of Khiaban-Mazar-e Herat. The research has been done by the historical-analytical method. This research shows that urban development in Herat was remarkably similar to Tabriz; in Herat, just like in Tabriz, the Mongols were extending the suburbs of the city and establishing commercial uses and aristocratic palace gardens. The process of expansion of Herat’s suburbs was so widespread that Herat’s ruler, imitating the “Ghazani Wall” in Tabriz, built a massive wall around Herat to encompass all of its new suburbs. With the construction of this wall, Herat’s Mazar Street was divided into two parts, North and South, and the south part of the wall within the boundary of the city was separated from the cemetery and led to various uses in Herat.
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