Afif-Abad Garden
Located in an affluent district of Shiraz, the city of flower and nightingale and in an area of over 127,000 square meters, Afif-Abad Garden is one of the most beautiful historical gardens in Shiraz, blending the architectural features of the Achaemenid, Sassanid and Qajar eras.
Built by Ali Mohammad Khan Qavam al-Molk in 1863 and inherited and renovated by his niece Ms. Afife, the garden museum is finally called Afif Abad while it was originally known as ‘Golshan Garden’ and was used as a promenade during the Safavid era. It includes a royal palace, an old weapons museum, and a Persian garden, all open to public visit.
As the National Heritage Site, representing Iranian floriculture due to the unique display of seasonal flower designs, the garden’s amazing part is the two-storey fabulous mansion in the middle with great tile work, stone columns similar to Persepolis’ style and enormous view of the garden.
The lower floor of the palace with a nice fountain in its midst is now a military museum leading to the upper floor through three stairs which includes a long corridor with nested rooms along both sides as well as a magnificent large hall at the center with nice furniture, a big chandelier, and two carved marble fireplaces in the north and south topped by a wooden ceiling decorated with images of flowers, plants, hunting preserves and festivity overlooking the garden through windows with colorful glass.
Among the various weapons being showcased in the lower floor or the military museum, the precious personal guns belonged to Qajari and Pahlavi kings such as Fathali Shah, Nasseredin Shah, Mozafaredin Shah, Reza Shah, and Mohammad Reza Shah must be mentioned together with valuable carpets and personal piano of Queen Farah Pahlavi used in 2500-year celebrations being exhibited in the upper floor or Ebrat (Edification) Museum.
In front of the mansion and surrounded by wonderful cypress, pine, orange, and spruce trees, there is a big stone pool which reflects the building in still water and enhances the indescribable beauty of the complex, making it an excellent place for taking a walk and having pleasant moments.
In addition, the garden contains two other famous traditional parts: a coffeehouse with six chambers decorated with fantastic illustrations from the noted Iranian poet Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh (Book of Kings) and a treasury bath adorned with great bas-reliefs in different themes which are well worth visiting.
