تزيينات كتيبه اي مسجد جامع قزوين

Inscriptional Decorations of the Friday Mosque of Ghazvin

The Ancient Friday Mosque of Ghazvin, like the other Friday Mosques of Iran, is magnificent. Having four eyvans(vaulted halls), this mosque is shaped rectangular and spread east-west with a melon-like dome. Its distinct inscriptions are of great importance in architecture and calligraphy due to their art, style of writing, and concepts. This article scrutinizes the inscriptions of the mosque (main prayer hall in particular) so as to rediscover it aesthetically. The main prayer hall, called Jaʹfari arch, is believed by archeologists to be built in the Samanid era. The significance of Jaʹfari arch (or Khomartaashi maqsurah), apart from its height, is owing to its four inscriptions that are plaster-moldered in beautiful and fine textures. The first inscription is written in sols script with the big reed pen (qalam) starting from the south side and branching off the stem of the dome which is plaster-molded in eight sides. This script tells about the spiritual characteristics of the Prophet Mohammad (P.B.U.H) and