The Bazaar of Isfahan was effectively produced in the 1970s and details the architecture and life of the well-known bazaar in Isfahan (Iran). Although a fundamental part of the Isfahan cityscape, the bazaar has never received much scholarly attention.
The book fills this gap, relating the present of the Bazaar (as it was in the 1970s) to its past, and the architecture and organization of the complex to its changing functions. It provides documentation of the architecture of the bazaar, while at the same time emphasising the social experience of the complex, recording the everyday life of its inhabitants and users by means of both its text and images. In the latter respect in particular, it is truly unique.
The book is published as originally envisioned. Although written by Paul Oliver in the mid-1970s, the text is still accurate in terms of its facts and provides a fascinating glimpse of life in Isfahan during that period. The drawings, plans and photographs remain of great interest, as they capture the bazaar as it was during the 1970s and as such provide a rare glimpse of its recent history.
The Bazaar of Ishfahan includes an introductory essay by the editor, Marcel Vellinga, that provides an historic and academic contextualisation and details the history of the book, situates it in the context of the authors’ other work, and positions it within contemporary and subsequent scholarship on Isfahan architecture and Safavid cultural history.
The book also includes a glossary to help all those unfamiliar with the architectonic, historical or sociological terms.