HAMEDAN

Hamedan or Hamadan Province

Hamadan City

Hamadan is one of the oldest cities, of not only Iran, but of the world. Its historical origins date back to several centuries before Christ. Hamadan, which was the summer capital of the Median and Achaemeidians was then called Ekbatan or Hegmataneh,meaning a place of assembly. Hamadan is one of the cradles of Oriental civilization with a legendary background.
According to historical records, there was once a castle in this city by the name of Haft Hessar (Seven Walls), which had a thousand rooms and its grandeur equalled that of the Babylon Tower.
Hamadan is the homeland of great scholars and men of letters like Baba Taher Orian, Avicenna, and Mirzadeh Eshghi. The tombs of Avicenna and Baba Taher are located in this city.
Outside of Hamadan one will have two choices:
Lalejin village: It has always been well known for handicrafts like leather and ceramic work as well as for its beautiful carpets. The art of carpet weaving is so significant here. The carpets and the rugs of Hamadan are famous for their quality and colors. The village of Lalejin, famous for its pottery industry, is a place worth visiting. There are several ceramic workshops and numerous skillful artists that create the most beautiful and colorful ceramic jars in great numbers. Visiting one of these workshops is one of the best parts of a tour to Hamadan.

Hamadān or Hamedān (Persian: همدان, Old Persian: Haŋgmatana, Ecbatana) is the capital city of Hamadan Province of Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 473,149, in 127,812 families.
Hamedan is believed to be among the oldest Iranian cities and one of the oldest in the world. It is possible that it was occupied by the Assyrians in 1100 BCE; the Ancient Greek historian, Herodotus, states that it was the capital of the Medes, around 700 BCE.
Hamedan has a green mountainous area in the foothills of the 3,574-meter Alvand Mountain, in the midwest part of Iran. The city is 1,850 meters above sea level.
The special nature of this old city and its historic sites attract tourists during the summer to this city, located approximately 360 km southwest of Tehran.
The main symbols of this city are the Ganjnameh inscription, the Avicenna monument and the Baba Taher monument. People of the city identify their mother tongue as Persian.

Overview and History

Hamadan or Hamedan (Persian: همدان, Old Persian: Hagmatana, Ecbatana) is the capital city of Hamadan Province of Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 473,149, in 127,812 families.
Hamedan is believed to be among the oldest Iranian cities and one of the oldest in the world. It is possible that was occupied by the Assyrians in 1100 BCE; the Ancient Greek historian, Herodotus, states that it was the capital of the Medes, around 700 BCE.
Hamedan has a green mountainous area in the foothills of the 3,574-meter Alvand Mountain, in the midwest part of Iran. The city is 1,850 meters above sea level.
The special nature of this old city and its historic sites attract tourists during the summer to this city, located approximately 360 km southwest of Tehran.
The main symbols of this city are the Ganjnameh inscription, the Avicenna monument and the Baba Taher monument. People of the city are Persians and speak Persian. Hamadan is mentioned in the biblical book of Ezra as the place where a scroll was found giving the Jews permission from King Darius to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem. (Ezra 6:2). Its ancient name of Ecbatana is used in the Ezra text. Because it was a mile above sea level, it was a good place to preserve leather documents. During the Parthian era, Ctesiphon was the capital of the country, and Hamadan the summer capital and residence of the Parthian rulers. After the Parthians, the Sassanids constructed their summer palaces in Hamadan. In the year 633 the battle of Nahavand took place and Hamadan fell into the hands of the Muslim Arabs.

Handicrafts
Hamadan has always been well known for handicrafts like leather, ceramic, and beautiful carpets

Hamedan sights:

1-Baba Taher Orian
2-Ganjnameh
3-Alavian Dome
4-The Tomb of Esther Mordecai
5-Ali Sadr Cave
6-Pur Sina
7-Tomb of Esther and Mordechai
8-Hegmataneh Hill
9-Estakhr e Abbas Abad- a lake with a magnificent view of the city.
10-Excavated Ancient Ekbatana City
11-Gonbad-e Alavian
12-Hamadan Museum of Natural History
13-Hamadan Stone Lion
14-Lalejin
15-Mohammadi House
16-Nazari House

Baba Taher Orian

Baba Tahir Orian's mysticism, philosophy, and sentiments are reflected in his Rubaiyyat. Orian was born in Hamadan, Iran, in the early eleventh century. He was considered by his contemporaries as one of the most eminent, erudite mystics and sentimentalists of his time, a reputation he has held in the affection of his countrymen to the present day.
Baba Tahir, living in the first half of the 11th century A.D. He was one of the great gnostics of Ahl-e-Haghs Sect [a Dervish of the follower of the truth]. Songs and maxims of Baba Tahir were originally read in the Pahlavi, Lurish, Kurdish and Hamadanis dialects, which have taken their present form in the course of time.

Baba Tahir is known as one of the most revered and respectable early poets in Iranian literature. Most of his life is clouded in mystery. He was born and lived in Hamadan, the capital city of the Hamedan Province in Iran. He was known by the name of Baba Taher-e Oryan (The Naked), which suggests that he may have been a wandering dervish. Legend tells that the poet, an illiterate woodcutter, attended lectures at a religious school, where he was not welcomed by his fellow-students. The dates of his birth and death are unknown. One source indicates that he died in 1019. If this is accurate, it would make Baba Tahir a contemporary of Ferdowsi and Pour Sina (Avicenna) and an immediate precursor of Omar Khayyam. Another source reports that he lived between 1000 and 1055, which is most unlikely. Reliable research notes speculate that Baba Tahir lived for seventy-five years. Rahat al-sodur of Ravandi (completed 603/1206), describes a meeting between Baba Tahir, and the Saljuq conqueror Togrel (pp. 98–99). According to L. P. Elwell-Sutton: He could be described as the first great poet of Sufi love in Persian literature. In the last two decades his do-baytis have often been put to music.
Legend has it that Baba Tahir was a very simple and innocent man whom everyone mocked and made fun of in his town. He was not a poet to begin with. One very cold winter day, people of the town decided to make a fool out of him just for fun. They brought him to a frozen fountain and told him if he swim in the icy water, he will become a poet. Being innocent, he believed them. He took off his clothes and entered the icy water. Everyone started laughing at him as he was swimming in the cold water. He realized he was made fun of and was heart broken. He came out and, to everyone’s surprise, a “true poet” was indeed born out of the icy water on that day. Hence, he is called “the naked”. His poetry has touched many souls.

Ganjnameh

The Achaemenian Ganjnameh [Treasure Inventory] is a lengthy inscription in cuneiform script, composed in three parts [in Old Persian, Elamite and Babylonian] and carved on the face of two rocks of some two meters in height, on Mt. Alvand. These twenty line inscriptions, belonging to Darius and Xerxes, consist of a genealogical account of the Achaemenian monarchs and the adoration of Ahuramazda.
Here is the translation of the text concerning Xerxes:
"The Great God Ahuramazda, greatest of all the gods, who created the earth and the sky and the people; who made Xerxes king, and outstanding king as outstanding ruler among innumerable rulers; I [am] the great king Xerxes, king of kings, king of lands with numerous inhabitants, king of this vast kingdom with far-away territories, son of the Achaemenian monarch Darius."

Ganj Nameh (Persian: گنجنامه‎ literally: Treasure epistle) is an ancient inscription, 5 km southwest of Hamedan, on the side of Alvand Mountain in Iran. The inscription, which has been carved in granite, is composed of two sections. One (on the left) ordered by Darius the Great (521-485 BC) and the other (on the right) ordered by Xerxes the Great (485-65 BC). Both sections, which have been carved in three ancient languages of Old Persian, Neo-Babylonian and Neo-Elamite, start with praise of God (Ahura Mazda) and describe the lineage and deeds of the mentioned kings.
The later generations who could not read the Cuneiform alphabets of the ancient Persian assumed that they contained the guide to an uncovered treasury; hence they called it Ganjnameh. The name literally means “treasure epistle”, but it has also been called Jangnameh (Persian: جنگنامه‎) whose literal translation is “war epistle”.

Alavian Dome

It is a four-sided interesting 12th century mausoleum belonging to the late Seljuk period. On the exterior, it resembles the Gonbad-e Sorkh of Maragheh. Inside this Dervish Monastery, taken over by the powerful Alavi Family ruling Hamadan for two centuries, is decorated by the same type of gypsum moldings of the Heydarieh Mosque of Qazvin. The Alavi Family tombs (two in all) are in the crypt and can be reached by a spiral staircase inside the tower. As regards its architectural merits, the stucco ornamentation of its mihrab, with intricate geometric designs and whirling floral motifs on the exterior walls and several inscriptions in Kuffic and Thulth styles, ranks among the most beautiful of its kind in Iran.

The Tomb of Esther Mordecai

The Hamadanis most curious monument is a Jewish mausoleum reputed to contain the graves of Esther and Mordecai. Esther was a young Jewish girl who became the wife of Xerxes, who ended up protecting the people of Moses from the schemes of Haman, Xerxes Prime Minister.
The present building of this mausoleum, which is visited by Jewish pilgrims from all over the world, has nothing to speak about from the architectural point of view. Under its simple brick dome there are two graves with some Hebrew inscription up on the plaster work of the wall. Two exquisite wooden tomb-boxes are also to be seen, one of which is of an earlier date and bears an inscription in Hebrew.
The original structure dates to the 7th Century A. H. [13th Century A.D.]. It might have been erected over other and more ancient tombs. The exterior form of this mausoleum, built of brick and stone, resembles Islamic constructions, and the monument consists of an entrance, a vestibule, a sanctuary and a Shah-neshin (Kings sitting place). Some believe that the mausoleum is the resting-place of Esther, the Achaemenian Queen and wife of Xerxes (Khashayarshah) and the second tomb belongs to her uncle, Mordecai.

Ali Sadr Cave

Outside Hamadan one can visit or take a boat tour round the Ali Sadr Cave, an endless network of caves full of clear water with caverns up to 40 meters high and 100 meters wide.
The cave is located about 100 kilometers north of Hamedan, western Iran (more accurately at 48°18E 35°18N). The cave walls can extend up to 40 meters high, and contains several large, deep lakes. It has a river flowing through it and most travel through the cave system is done with a boat.
The cave was originally discovered during the reign of Darius I (521-485 BC) which can be verified by an old inscription at the entrance of the tunnel.
You'll be surprised by the beauty of the cave because you will see breathtaking sceneries. Inside the cave there is a coffee shop where you can drink tea or coffee.

Pur Sina

Abu Ali al-Husayn ibn Abdallah ibn Sina (Persian پورسينا Pur Sina [ˈpuːr ˈsiːnɑː] “son of Sina”; c. 980, Afshana near Bukhara– 1037, Hamadan, Iran), commonly known as Ibn Sina or by his Latinized name Avicenna, was a Persian polymath, who wrote almost 450 treatises on a wide range of subjects, of which around 240 have survived. In particular, 150 of his surviving treatises concentrate on philosophy and 40 of them concentrate on medicine.
His most famous works are The Book of Healing, a vast philosophical and scientific encyclopaedia, and The Canon of Medicine, which was a standard medical text at many medieval universities. The Canon of Medicine was used as a text-book in the universities of Montpellier and Leuven as late as 1650. Ibn Sīnā’s Canon of Medicine provides a complete system of medicine according to the principles of Galen (and Hippocrates).
His corpus also includes writing on philosophy, astronomy, alchemy, geology, psychology, Islamic theology, logic, mathematics, physics, as well as poetry. He is regarded as the most famous and influential polymath of the Islamic Golden Age.

Tomb of Esther and Mordechai

The Tomb of Esther and Mordechai is located in Hamadan, Iran. Believed to house the remains of the biblical Queen Esther and her cousin Mordechai, it is the most important pilgrimage site for Jews in the country. In 1891 the tomb was described as consisting of an outer and inner chamber surmounted by a dome about 50ft high. The dome had been covered with blue tiles, but most of them had fallen away. A few tombs of worthy Jewish individuals were located within the outer chamber.

Hegmataneh Hill

it is excavated Ancient Ekbatana City located at the entrance of Hamadan city. there is a small museum showing some of the archaeological finds. small simple armenian Church is located in this hill complex. there is a historitical & so peaceful place that give you a good sense & relaxation

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