The Tehran Bazaar in the Early Qajar Period

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 M.A. in Iranian Architectural Studies, Faculty od Architecture and Urban Planning, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran

2 Co-founder Editor of Nowruzgan Research Laboratory, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

Background and objectives: The Tehran Bazaar has long served as a key economic and spatial element in the city’s historical development. This study investigates the physical and cultural evolution of this Bazaar from its Safavid origins through the early Qajar period. The aim is to reconstruct the extent, structure, and development phases of the bazaar throughout this period and to understand its transformation in relation to broader political and urban changes.
 
Materials and Methods: This research adopts a descriptive–analytical approach and is based on primary historical sources, including geographical texts, endowment deeds (‘waqf-nāma’s), travelogues, historical maps (notably those by Nāskov, Krusinskī, and Bruezin), and architectural remains. The investigation followed three major steps: 1) gathering and categorising textual and cartographic evidence, 2) cross-analysing maps and documents to identify spatial boundaries and structures, and 3) reconstructing the bazaar’s expansion pattern and evaluating the role of Fatḥ-ʿAlī Shāh’s construction initiatives in its transformation.
 
Results and conclusion: The study shows that the Safavid-era core of the Tehran Bazaar emerged in the Chāl-Meydān area, among the shrines of Imāmzāda Yahyā, Zayd, Sayyid Nasr al-Dīn, and Sayyid Ismāʿīl. The Safavid bazaar stretched from the Meydān-e Mālforūshhā in the south to a point near what later became the Grand Chahārsūq. Key structures were restoredin the early Qajar period, but the bazaar retained its Safavid spatial layout. Under Fatḥ-ʿAlī Shāh, major extensions—including the construction of the Grand Chahārsūq—expanded the bazaar westwards and northwards, increasing its spatial complexity. Secondary branches such as the Ironmongers’ Bazaar, Tinsmiths’ Bazaar, and Bāzār-e Bēn al-Ḥarameyn were consolidated or newly developed in this period. These transformations reinforced the bazaar’s central role as both an economic engine and an urban form. The study underscores the need for interdisciplinary research and archaeological inquiry to further illuminate the hidden layers of the Tehran Bazaar’s development during the Safavid-Qajar transition.

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References

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Soffeh
Volume 35, Issue 4 - Serial Number 111
November 2025
Pages 87-103

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History

  • Receive Date: 04 February 2024
  • Revise Date: 02 May 2024
  • Accept Date: 01 November 2025

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