TEHRAN – A restoration project has commenced on two pillars that support the Clock Tower of Tabriz, which is probably the most unmissable 20th-century monument in the ancient Iranian city.

“Pillars number 13th and 14th of Borj-e Sa’at (Clock Tower) have undergone restoration using traditional masonry,” an official with Tabriz municipality said on Sunday.

“Restorers use the existing stones during their work on the foundation to preserve its historical identity,” the official explained.

The monument, owned by Tabriz Municipality, is located exactly in the heart of the city. It is where historical maps of and photos of Tabriz, along with the Golden Key of Tabriz, are being kept. Some say it is impossible to visit Tabriz and not see this symbolic building.

Soaked in history and culture for millennia, Tabriz, the capital of East Azarbaijan, embraces several historical and religious sites, including the Jameh Mosque of Tabriz and Arg of Tabriz, and UNESCO-registered Tabriz Historic Bazaar Complex to name a few. The city became the capital of the Mongol Il-Khan Mahmud Gazan (1295–1304) and his successor. Timur (Tamerlane), a Turkic conqueror, took it in 1392. Some decades later, the Kara Koyunlu Turkmen made it their capital. It was when the famous Blue Mosque was built in Tabriz.

The city retained its administrative status under the Safavid dynasty until 1548 when Shah Tahmasp I relocated his capital westward to Qazvin. During the next two centuries, Tabriz changed hands several times between Persia and the Ottoman Empire. During World War I, the city was temporarily occupied by Turkish and then Soviet troops.

AFM