'GAZETTEER OF PERSIA. VOLUME II' [‎303r] (610/706)

TABRIZ
593
a most monotonous effect, and combine in c, general coup d’oeil to impress
the traveller with a very mean opinion of this city.”
The buildings at Tabriz are far less striking than might have been expect
ed in so famous a city. Close to the gate from which one passes to the Tehran
road is a fine ruin, called the Kabud Masjid, or £ ‘ blue mosque. ” It is about
300 years old, and the blue tiles from which it gets its name are beautifully
arabesqued.
The streets of t^ie city are generally narrow and always unpleasant; in dry
weather from the quantity of dust, and in wet from the deep mud. Eastwick
describes them as narrow lanes, filled with holes, pits, ditches and filth, and
adds, the houses are of mud, many of them reduced by the late rains to
ruinous heaps ; and there is a close, dark and dirty bazaar roofed over with
sticks, with mangy, miserable dogs, and more miserable mendicants, prow
ling about.
The villa of the Persian heir-apparent, who was usually governor of the
province of Azarbaljan, is one of the best places in Tabr'z. It is approached
through extensive courtyards, and is situated in the midst of a large garden.
There is a small artificial pond in front of the villa. A kind of menagerie behind
the villa provides for scientific recreation. The villa itself is a pleasing struc
ture in a somewhat crumbling condition, with a pavilion crowned by a cupola,
which is reached by a steep staircase. The halls are decorated in Persian
style.
The castle or ‘ e ark ” is a lofty structure, dating from the middle ages,
but now a ruin. It is asserted that it was originally intended for a mosque,
which ill-accords with its mighty walls. The latter attain a height of 120
feet, and a thickness of about 25 feet at the base. The castle has been ren
dered famous by an historical event and by. a miracle. The first of these
two occurrences is the military execution which took place in 1848 within
its walls, when the prophet Bab, who wished to reform Islamism, and who
nearly succeeded in driving the Qajar dynasty from the throne, was shot
dead (1850). The second occurrence was that of a woman who, in accord
ance with the judge’s verdict, was condemned to be thrown from the top
of the fortress. No sooner was she hurled into open space than her dress
kept her floating in the air, and she was gently deposited in the gardens of
a house opposite.
The arsenal is contained in the courtyard of the castle. The city extends
round the castle in a wide circle. An inner wall, in a state of decay, en
closes these portions of the city which are situated round the castle, whilst
an outer wall, in a somewhat better condition, encircles the entire radius.
The mass of verdure, seldom to be met with to so great an extent in Persia,
imparts a cheerful aspect to the city, which, besides, is beautifully situated.
It resembles an oasis in the midst of a great mountain wilderness. To the
south is the snow-covered crest of the Sahand mountain, to the north-east
is a splendid dark wall of rocks, whilst to the west the view extends over a
wide, well-cultivated plain, as far as the jagged summit of the peninsula of
Shahl, Lake Urumleh.
Military .—The arsenal was said in 1894 to contain 12,000 Werndl, 2,500
Chassepot rifles and 2|- million cartridges, but this was greatly exaggerated.
The cartridges had been in store 10 years, but looked serviceable. The
dryness of the climate would preserve them for a long p eriod.
0300 GSB