Isfahan Province
 
Mosques of Isfahan
Friday Mosque
Located at roughly 45 minutes walking distance from Imam Square, this mosque is the most ancient and in some ways the most interesting building in the city and hence in Iran. Built in the late 11th and early 12th century, additions and changes to it were made in subsequent periods. As such it characterizes the evolution of Iranian sacred architecture during a period of one thousand years. Though the mosque was partially damaged during the Iraqi air raids, it was immediately repaired after the war. The mosque has the largest courtyard in Iran, 65 meters by 76 meters. In the center, a fine marble pool with festooned edges reflects in its calm waters the image of the four ivans. Every architectural age of Iran can be observed and studied here.

 
Imam Mosque
Previously called Masjid-e Shah, this mosque is a masterpiece of the 16th century from the viewpoint of architecture, tile work, stone carving and hugeness of its dome and minarets. It is a representation of a culmination of a thousand years of mosque building and among the greatest buildings of the world. Of the four ivans, the west ivan has wide porch surmounted by a minaret. The south ivan opens to reval a great prayer hall surmounted by a double cupola 38 meter high on the inside and 52 meter on the inside leaving a 12 meter empty space which serves as an extraordinary “echo chamber”. Consequently the speaker in the mehrab (alter) can be distinctly heard in all other parts of the mosque. In the center of the great prayer hall there are a few black paving stones underneath the dome, which stamped upon create seven clear echoes. It is worth trying.
The fact that sound is equally carried to all parts of the dome chamber and cloisters on each side as well as the courtyard and the lateral porches, indicates that four centuries ago, Iranian architects were able to construct buildings provided with acoustics not inferior to those of any modern building.
Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque: Situated on the east of the Imam Square, this mosque is another masterpiece of architecture and tile work, a beautiful religious building wherein the elaborate design serves to heighten the visitor’s spirituality rather than distract him from it. This mosque has acquired its name from its prayer leader during the Shah Abbas I era, the great Lebanese Sheikh Lutfollah, who lead the prayers and preached in this mosque.
This mosque differs from all others in several respects. While turquoise, blue and pink predominate in the motifs of the fa栤e, elsewhere, particularly on the dome, both inside and outside, the main color is yellow. The mosque has no courtyard nor minaret, sine it was not a place of public worship. It was more a private oratory than a mosque
Palaces in Esfahan
The Chehel Sutun Palace
The name Chehel Sutun means Forty Columns, whereas actually this building has only 18 columns. A reflecting pool is provided to the other 18 columns. A more common explanation is the forty was one used synonymously with many in Persian and still is in some quarters.
Each column is made out of a single tall plane trunk covered with a thin layer of painted wood, adorned with glass and painting. This palace, located inside a garden with an area of 67,000 square meters, was built as an official court and a reception hall by Shah Abbas II (1647 AD). At its simplest it is only a high-roof porch constituting the fa栤e. When attached to a royal building, it provides a huge outdoor reception hall. The walls of the main hall of Chehel Sutun are decorated with six large remarkable wall paintings four of which belong to the Safavid period. There are some smaller paintings in the hall and chambers together with magnificent ornamental designs.

Ali Qapu Palace
Built in the early 17th century AD, this forty-eight meter high building with an imposing portal is six floors tall and each floor is decorated in its own way. Accessible by two difficult spiral staircases, all the small rooms have points of interest but it on the second floor that one can look around and have a magnificent view of Sheikh Lutfollah’s mosque, the Imam mosque and a view of the northern section of the Imam Square. Unfortunately many of the wall paintings and mosaics which once decorated the numerous small rooms, corridors and stairways have been destroyed. On the other hand the paintings and sculptures that remain are still being used as models by miniaturists and engravers now working in the bazaar.
Bridges of Isfahan

Situated on the banks of the Zayendeh Rud river, the city of Esfahan has some unique and beautiful bridges connecting both the banks.

Sio Seh Pol
This Bridge derives its name from its thirty- three arches. Running north-south, this bridge is used by the Chahar Bagh (Four Gardens) highway connecting the Chahar Bagh with the Armenian settlement of New Julfa. An extraordinary structure- 300 meters in length and 14 meters wide, it serves both as a bridge as well as a dam.

Khaju Bridge
 About 1.5 km downstream to the east of Sio Seh Pol, the Khaju Bridge is slightly smaller but more attractive than the Sio Seh Pol. This bridge has two levels of terraces overlooking the river. Built on the foundations of an earlier structure, this bridge too has been constructed for two purposes – a roadway and a dam. The idea was to form an artificial lake for some distance upstream, opposite the numerous palaces and kiosks on either side of the river. The most fascinating feature of this bridge is its 12 meter wide pavilions called Shah Neshin (Royal Parlors) which were once decorated with inscriptions. A traditional teahouse under the bridge is an ideal place to relax with a cup of tea and a puff of ghailan (hubble-bubble)