Sarvestan Palace

The Sassanid Palace of Sarvestan (Persian: کاخ ساسانی سروستان, romanized: kakh-eh Sassani-ye Sarvestan) is a Sassanid-era building in the Iranian city of Sarvestan, some 90 km southeast from the city of Shiraz. The palace was built in the 5th century AD, and was either a gubernatorial residence or a Zoroastrian fire temple.

Sarvestan Palace
کاخ ساسانی سروستان
View of the palace
General information
Type	Palace
Town or city	Sarvestan
Country	Iran
Coordinates	29°11′44″N 53°13′51″E
Completed	420-422 AD

Main hall of the palace

Drawing of the Palace of Sarvestan. The palace measures 130 ft. frontage and 143 ft. deep, with an internal court.

Reconstructional drawing of the Sarvestan Palace

History

The Sarvestan Palace was built by the Sasanian king Bahramgur (Persian: بهرام گور; r. 420–438) and dominates an immense, empty plain. The name "palace" is considered misleading, because the monument's function is obscure. It may have been a hunting lodge or a sanctuary instead of a palace, because of the presence of a small building, just north of the palace, whose function remains unknown.

Palace court

A visitor who would have arrived from the south, would have seen three iwans. After entering the central one, he would have reached a large square hall under a large dome, made of baked brick. After this, a visitor would have found himself on a rectangular courtyard, surrounded by the residential quarters. The building reminds one of the Ghal'eh Dokhtar and the palace of Ardashir, both near Firuzabad; the difference is that the Sarvestan palace is open to all sides. The building, made of stone and mortar, must have had fine decorations, which partly survive.

See also

• Iranian architecture
• History of Persian domes

References

• J Homayooni (1996), History of Sarvestan.