Chelebi Oghlu Tomb

Sultaniya, Iran

A brick tomb tower is octagonal both on exterior and interior, with a dome upon a sixteen-sided drum set back from the exterior wall. A pointed-arch panel deeply recessed into a rectangular panel articulates each of the eight exterior sides. The spandrels above each arch contain a hexagon, originally filled with tile decoration. A geometric brick lay decorates each arched panel to almost half its height, the remainder of the panel in common bond.

The eight interior wall faces, and the sixteen-sides of the zone of transition also each hold a pointed-arch recess, the surfaces coated in plaster. The mihrab niche includes stucco muqarnas. A hole in the floor provides view of a crypt below.

Sources:

Pope, Arthur U. and Ackerman, P eds. A Survey of Persian Art. (Tehran: Soroush Press, 1977) p.1099

Wilber, Donald, The Architecture of Islamic Iran, (New York: Greenwood Press, 1969) p.173