A Study of the Decorations in the Four Minarets of Sultan Hussein Mirza School in Herat

Abstract

Sultan Hussein Mirza School is one of the great and magnificent buildings of the Timurid period of Herat, which is located in the north of the old city of Herat. The school was once a place for scientists and scholars in the region, and historians have written extensively about it. The buildings and paintings of this famous school are collapsing and demolishing day by day. The purpose of writing this article is to examine the decorations in the four minarets of Sultan Hussein Mirza School. This article is conducted by Library and Field Research method. The Library Research is related to the history and process of the school building and its post excavations. In the Field Research section, the author himself has visited the school area and the four remaining minarets of Sultan Hussein’s school and wrote the observations of each minaret separately. The results show that all four minarets in school are decorated. Its decorations include geometric patterns, Arabesque motifs, Kufic inscriptions and Muqarnas.