Tabriz Historic Bazaar Complex

In Islamic cities, the bazaar was more than just an economic place for purchase, sale, and exchange of goods; bazaars have always been a place for cultural and social exchange since antiquity. The Grand Bazaar of Tabriz is a historic complex located in the city of Tabriz, the center of East Azarbaijan Province in northwestern Iran. The Bazaar of Tabriz was one of the key commercial centers on the Silk Road; the network of trade routes that connected the East and West, and was central to the economic, cultural, political, and religious interactions between these regions from the 2nd century BCE to the 18th century. This bazaar which is the oldest and largest covered bazaar in the world is still active.

 

Many foreign travelers such as Marco Polo, Jean-Baptiste Chardin, and Ibn Batouta who visited Iran, wrote about Tabriz and its bazaar, and mentioned the spectacular architecture of this complex and the high quality and variety of its goods in their travel books. The structure of the bazaar consists of many interconnected rows, and avenues, each of which are dedicated to different goods such as handicrafts, jewelry, and hand-woven rugs, hand-stitched shoes, foods, and other merchandise. The major rows of the bazaar are Amir Bazaar (for gold and jewelry), Mozzafarieh (hand-woven rugs, sorted by knot size and type), Bashmakhchi Bazaar (for shoes), Kiz Basdi Bazaar, Rahli Bazaar, and many other rows for various goods.

 

When Tabriz became the capital city of the Safavid dynasty in the 16th century, the city and the bazaar prospered at the time. The city lost its status as the capital but the bazaar remained important as a commercial and economic center in the region and on the Silk Road.

 

Tabriz Historic Bazaar Complex

In Islamic cities, the bazaar was more than just an economic place for purchase, sale, and exchange of goods; bazaars have always been a place for cultural and social exchange since antiquity. The Grand Bazaar of Tabriz is a historic complex located in the city of Tabriz, the center of East Azarbaijan Province in northwestern Iran. The Bazaar of Tabriz was one of the key commercial centers on the Silk Road; the network of trade routes that connected the East and West, and was central to the economic, cultural, political, and religious interactions between these regions from the 2nd century BCE to the 18th century. This bazaar which is the oldest and largest covered bazaar in the world is still active.

 

Many foreign travelers such as Marco Polo, Jean-Baptiste Chardin, and Ibn Batouta who visited Iran, wrote about Tabriz and its bazaar, and mentioned the spectacular architecture of this complex and the high quality and variety of its goods in their travel books. The structure of the bazaar consists of many interconnected rows, and avenues, each of which are dedicated to different goods such as handicrafts, jewelry, and hand-woven rugs, hand-stitched shoes, foods, and other merchandise. The major rows of the bazaar are Amir Bazaar (for gold and jewelry), Mozzafarieh (hand-woven rugs, sorted by knot size and type), Bashmakhchi Bazaar (for shoes), Kiz Basdi Bazaar, Rahli Bazaar, and many other rows for various goods.

 

When Tabriz became the capital city of the Safavid dynasty in the 16th century, the city and the bazaar prospered at the time. The city lost its status as the capital but the bazaar remained important as a commercial and economic center in the region and on the Silk Road.

 

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