Gonbad (architecture)
Gonbad ( Persian گنبد, "Dome", also gunbad, gumbaz, gumbad, gombad, gomboz , Turkish kümbet ) refers to a burial tower with a domed or conical roof in traditional Persian architecture . In addition to the semicircular shape of the roof, polygonal conical and round conical shapes are common. The equivalent in Turkish tomb architecture is called Türbe and in Arabic Qubba .
The history of the Gonbads goes back to pre-Islamic Iran. Already under the Parthians it was a frequently used stylistic element, which was further developed and perfected under the Sassanids . In this pre-Islamic period, a gonbad symbolized the greatness of the respective ruler. The building tradition continued in the Islamic period. Here the dome represented heaven and referred the believer to his place in the cosmos.
Abu Lulu, Kashan, example of a polygonal conical Gonbad
Gonbad-e Qabus , (10th century, now Golestan ) (round, conical)
Ceiling of the Gonbad-e Soltanieh ( Öldscheitü Mausoleum ) in Zanjan Province (14th century) (parabolic)
literature
- Nader Ardalan, Laleh Bakhtiar : Sense of Unity. The Sufi Tradition in Persian Architecture . Kazi Publications, Chicago 2000, ISBN 978-1871031782
