One of the oldest mosques of Iran was constructed in Damghan between 748-787 (130-170) on the foundations of a Sassanid palace or fire temple.
Masjid-e Tāriḵāna (Khāne-ye ḵodā, the house of God) lies southeast of Dāmghān. It was built between 748-787 (130-170) (Godard, p.109) or as Pirnia specifies, in the year 777 (Pirnia, p. 134). The plan is simple and square-shaped. The current construction of Tāriḵāna constitutes a pillared hall called Shabestān, a square-shaped yard and a row of porticos built on the east side of the mosque. The mosque's pillared hall is 12/4 ms long and 3/5 ms wide (Karimi, p.97). It has seven longitudinal carinas in the direction of Qibla and three latitudinal carinas in such a way that the middle carina bears a niche (Hoseini, p.234). The mosque is called chehel sotūn (forty columns) because of its intensity (Amin, p.62). The arched entrance opening to the Qible is much higher and wider than usual to provide a better view of the mosque altar. The mosque is surrounded by arcades with 22 openings to the courtyard. The barrel vaults cover the mosque with thick brick columns with a diameter of 160 cm and a height of six meters. This mosque opens to a courtyard in the middle from 26/72 ms to 25/72 ms. There are no steps separating the courtyard from the side-covered rows (Amin, p. 63; Hoseini, p. 234).
Masjid-e Tāriḵāna was constructed based on the Khorāsāni style of architecture which includes pre-Islamic Iranian components as well as elements of the Partians and the Sasanids (Karimi, p. 96). The barrel vaults are held up by strong brick columns, and the large courtyard and roofs are without walls and supported only by cylinders in line with Sassanid architecture (Amin, p.62; Godard, p.102; Akbari & et.al, p. 1014).
Baked and unbaked bricks are the main materials with which the mosque was constructed and strengthened by wood. Similar to Parthian and Sassanid bricks, square bricks are stacked horizontally and vertically. Unlike other mosques paved with brick or stone, the central courtyard floor has been covered only with limestone and gypsum. The mosque is not flagged or bricked but coated with plaster and mud (Amin, p. 63).
The minaret of Tāriḵāna like the ones of the congressional mosques of Fahraj and Nāi’en are in the oldest style of Iranian minarets (Bloom, p. 233; Karimi, p. 98). The first minaret of Tāriḵāna has been ruined over time. Under Bakhtiār ibn Mohammad, who was appointed as governor of Ghūmes by Manūchehr ibn Qabūs Malik (1033-1042) a new minaret was built on the foundations of the previous one. Located in the northwest area of the mosque, the minaret must be dated between 1026 and 1032, and most probably to 1028. The anonymous architect of the minaret also constructed the tomb of Boq’a-ye Pir-e ‘Alamdār, for the deceased father of Abu Harb Bakhtiyār (Bloom, p.233; Azad, p.50; Markaz-e Asnād wa Tahqiqāt-e Dāneshkade-ye Me’māri wa Shahrsāzi Dāneshgāh Shahid Beheshti, p. 76). This minaret is 26 ms high; and though the top has fallen, the tower must originally have been more than 30 meters high. The tapering cylindrical brick shaft measures 4.20 meters in diameter and the base reduces gradually to 3m as it moves upward. There are 86 stairs leading to the top of the minaret which was probably intended for saying azān (the call to prayer) (Bloom, p.233; Azad, p.50; Karimi, p. 62; Shareq, p. 19). The minaret is decorated with seven broad bands of geometrical patterns (Amin, 2001, 62, Shareq, 1968, 19). The single line of Kufic inscription of the minaret reads «بسم الله. امر ببناء هذه المناره الحاجب الجلیل: ابوحرب بختیار بن محمد، فی ولایه الامیر السید الاجل فلک المعالی» (Afsharfar, p.91). Its translation is: "In the name of God. The great governor Bakhtiyār ibn Muhammad ordered the construction of this manāra under the sovereignty of the amir, the great lord, Falak al-Ma’ali Abu Mansur” (Bloom, 234).
As its name implies Tāriḵāna (Khana-ya Khoda, the house of God) was either intended as a Sassanid palace or a fire temple. The Turko-Mongol word of tāri means God, therefore, Tāriḵāna means God’s home (Amin, p.61). Even though this mosque was originally built in the 8th century, it was reconstructed during the reigns of the Ghaznavids and the Saljuqs and so its name was changed to Tāriḵāna (ibid). Some researchers believe that Tāriḵāna had actually been a fire temple in the pre-Islamic era. After the Arab conquest of Iran it was transformed into a mosque (Shareq, p.17; Karimi, p.95; Berand, p.70-71). In addition, some researchers look for its name origins in architectural styles. Noting its similarities to the Sassanid palaces, these researchers believe that the word ḵodā (which changed to tāri in later eras) originally referred to the word shāh (king). In this respect, Tāriḵāna would mean the King's home in the pre-Islamic era and so it retained its name after changing to a mosque (Amin, p.61). Erich Schmidt, who excavated Tappe Hesar in Damghan, believes that the large bricks of the mosque resemble the bricks of the Sassanid palace in Hesar. Therefore, he hypothesizes that Tāriḵāna may have originally been a Sassanid palace (Eschmidt, Erich, p.12-16). In particular the strong pillars and the vaults of the mosque and the method of stacking the bricks are in line with the palaces of Firuzābād and Sarvestān in Fars and so reinforce this hypothesis (Karimi, p.96).
Considering its holy intent, Tāriḵāna has continued its original architectural functions. Places of worship of all religions including Zoroastrianism and Islam were highly honored. Accepting the hypothesis that Tāriḵāna was originally a fire-temple, it has maintained its religious and social functions as a special place of worship. On the other hand, the sacred position of kings in Iranian culture and their farah-e izadi (divine splendor) gives these places special dignity. A number of historic and literary sources, the word ḵodā refer to kings. Considering the hypothesis that Tāriḵāna was already a Sassanid palace, mosques were built in revered places. Tāriḵāna has maintained its sacred function throughout time. Structural changes of Tāriḵāna from a palace or fire temple to the mosque did not need fundamental changes. According to archaeological evidence and written sources, Tāriḵāna was reconstructed with only surface modifications. In short, if we consider the sacred use of a location as its function, Tāriḵāna has maintained that function as a special and holy place. This is by being transformed from a pre-Islamic palace or fire temple into an Islamic mosque.
Maryam Kamali
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