Historic Eram Garden, Shiraz

The archetypal garden, Paradise, derives its name and its symbolism from the Old Persian, Pardeiza, meaning an enclosed area.

The Persian garden was born as a retreat from the harsh landscape. These gardens are the forerunners of the modern day garden and span centuries of development from the magnificent sanctuaries and hunting parks of 5th century BC Persepolis, to the magical nightingale gardens of 19th century Tehran. 

They provide an earthly paradise, where the garden can be used as a place of spiritual solace, a meeting place for friends, or a formal adjunct to the house or palace.

 

The ruins of the earliest surviving garden, dating to 550 BC and built by Cyrus the Great, are found on the plain of Marvdasht in southern Iran. This garden had a geometrical plan and stone watercourses. Incorporating architecture and planting, water rills and shade-giving pavilions, Cyrus's garden offered the background to all later garden development.

 

When Islam came to Persia, this model -- always walled and inward-looking -- was embraced, and the waterways came to signify the rivers of paradise: of water, milk and honey.

 

This style was widely copied with the spread of Islam, from the Moorish gardens of Spain to the Moghul gardens of India.

Persians built lavish gardens in contrast to the European garden of the time, which consisted of modest herb plantings around monasteries. One Persian garden featured a lake surrounded by tin, 20 meters by 30 meters, while another was more than a mile square with fruits that gleamed yellow and red, bright as the stars of heaven in a dusky night.

 

Unfortunately many have not survived, but Bagh-e Shahzadeh is one of the few remaining gardens, not far from the earthquake-devastated ancient city of Bam. Built in 1873, it contains a series of split level fountains leading to a large palace that was once the residence of Abdul Hamid Mirza, one of the last princes of the Qajar dynasty. 

 

It continues to work its magic, showing that the power of the Persian garden does not just come from itself alone, but its contrast to the harsh terrain that surrounds it.

Persian Garden on UNESCO World Heritage list

Inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list, the property includes nine gardens in as many provinces. They exemplify the diversity of Persian garden designs that evolved and adapted to different climate conditions while retaining principles that have their roots in the times of Cyrus the Great, 6th century BC. Always divided into four sectors, with water playing an important role for both irrigation and ornamentation, the Persian garden was conceived to symbolize Eden and the four Zoroastrian elements of sky, earth, water and plants. These gardens, dating back to different periods since the 6th century BC, also feature buildings, pavilions and walls, as well as sophisticated irrigation systems. They have influenced the art of garden design as far as India and Spain.

(Source: Art Arena)