Shiraz, Iran
Coordinates: 29.608610, 52.548510
The Nasir al-Mulk Mosque, also known as the Pink Mosque (Masjed-e Surati) is a traditional mosque in Shiraz, Iran. It is located in Gawd-i Araban quarter, near Shah Chéragh Mosque. It was built during Qajar dynasty rule of Iran.
The mosque includes extensive coloured glass in its facade, and displays other traditional elements such as the Panj Kase (“five concaved”) design.
It is named in popular culture as the ‘Pink Mosque’, due to the usage of a considerable number of pink-colored tiles for its interior design.
Western hypostyle hall architecture consists of 12 beautiful Spiral columns, turquoise mosaics in floor, and 7 doors with colorful glasses. Colorful glasses make colorful lights on the turquoise floor which is astonishing and dreamy.
History
The mosque was built during the Qajar dynasty, and is still in use under protection by the Endowment Foundation of Nasir al Molk.
Construction began in 1876 by the order of the late Hassan Ali Nasir al-Molk, one of the lords and aristocrats of Shiraz.
Nasir al Molk mosque was built at the peak of the westernization of Iran.
Although the iwan of the mosque is very similar in structure to the original iwans seen in many Persian mosques, such as Shah Mosque (Isfahan), in Nasir al Molk mosque the iwan is designed with bright-colored floral designs rather than turquoise colored geometrical shapes.
Floral designs and western architectural depictions on walls of the mosque make up an important undeniable feature of the mosque showing the western influence on Islamic Iran in the 19th century.
Know This
The mosque opens at 7:30AM and to appreciate it at its best, visitors must arrive early. The reflections usually last for a couple of hours, and their intensity depends both on the season and weather (for the light).
If you wanna see the colors, go in the morning time. It starts at 7.30 and ends at 10. The earlier you go, the less people there are.
Like most places in Shiraz I saw, the best word to describe it is peaceful. Colors here are just amazing. The used a lot of pinks in the tile work, the theme is floral, and the stained glass work just sets the whole thing off.
