An examination of the decorations of the “wooden door” of the tomb of four kings in Lahijan available in the National Museum of Iran

The wooden door of the tomb of four kings in Lahijan is one of the woodcarving works available in the National Museum of Iran, which has a special value in terms of the antiquity and beauty, as well as the inscriptions used in it. This door belongs to the Kiya dynasty that ruled in the northern regions of Iran at the same time as the Safavid period. Several prestigious art works have been left from the Kiya period, including woodcarving technique, one of which is the tomb of four kings of Lahijan and its ancient door. The present research seeks to answer the question of what are the motifs of the mentioned door and also the themes used in it and also identify the themes and contents of this historical work.

The aim of this research is to get acquainted with the Kiya’s art in the northern region of Iran and also to get acquainted with the visual and architectural elements of the region.

The present study has been conducted based on the library resources and historical perspective in a descriptive-analytical manner.

The plant motifs including arabesque and khatai have been used with remarkable elegance and variety in the decorations of the door of the tomb of four kings, all of which are the common motifs of the Safavid period. The most used line in inscriptions is the thuluth. Moreover, the themes of the inscriptions also include historical prayers and poetry. In general, by examining the characteristics of this work, it can be stated that the Kiaya government, like the Safavid rulers of their time, have perfectly considered the visual principles of the motifs.