Mashhad khiyaban (Street; charbagh) during Safavid dynasty

The aim of the Safavid architecture and urban design was to establish an ideal city based on Islamic beliefs and ideologies. Safavid cities included some symbols with religious significance, power of government and identity- giving. During the Safavid Period, wide and straight streets, major symbolic elements, were used to develop and improve new cities. The same design has been used in the city of Mashhad during Shah Abbas’ reign. This paper introduces one of the special streets in Mashhad. The first part of this paper introduces Mashhad’s history during the Safavid period and the special position of Imam Reza’s Holy Shrine. The latter part of the paper focuses on historical documents and analytical studies in order to explain a number of physical, functional and subjective features of Mashhad street; charbagh. Finally, the paper aims to highlight similarities of Mashhad's charbagh with Isfahan’s charbagh. The study shows that Mashhad’s charbagh and Isfahan’s charbagh have similar origins, yet these origins have been used in accordance with the site conditions and existent elements.