Niavaran Palace Complex

 Niavaran Palace Complex

If you are going to visit Tehran, Niavaran Palace, as an epitome of European and Iranian architectural style, with an exemplary sunroof design, should be the target of your journey. The very peculiar location, that is, the close neighborhood of two mattering-much buildings, has added an extra appeal to Niavaran Palace Complex. The prestigious historical monuments of Ahmad Shahi and Sahibqaraniah have made the complex appear to be of paramount attraction. Niavaran building is a two and half story construction with 9000 hectares of land.

The very first level had been specified for hosting special guests, the second floor as a private residential level, and the half floor as an office. Historically, the land had been a canebrake turned into a garden upon the decree of one of the Qajar kings, Lotf Ali Shah Qajar. The very particular name of the Palace ( Niavaran: Ni or Ney in Persian) allusively connotes the cane (a place with the cane). Three other Qajar kings, Mohammad Shah, Nasir Al-Din Shah, and Ahmad Shah, were then ordered to construct some buildings in the heart of the garden (Ahmad Shahi and Sahibqaraniah are among them). With the advent of the Pahlavi era, the king ordered the destruction of small buildings and established a modern palace instead.  The very design of Niavaran Palace is a mixture of European and Iranian styles. The inward part of the building is by itself an artwork, a handwork plaster-modeling art by a unique Persian plaster artist.

Its beauty was added by a Persian-style mirror-work that is hand in hand with the Persian tile art of azure hue. The interior furniture and decorations were designed by a master French group using different thematic colors and various styles for the floor and the room curtains. Alluring Persian rugs shine in every corner of the palace. Precious decorative stuff shine in every spot.

The very entrance is majestic indeed. Ascending many short steps, you gradually transcend to the high columns that lead to the front wall full of Persian-blue tile-work. Everything is really ready for a royal welcome. The feeling of grandeur becomes an existing fact when you step on the black, shining granite stones of the floor reflecting your shadow. If you can set yourself free from this captivating sense of elegance, then you will be mesmerized by the exalted ambiance of the entrance hall with outstanding mirror-work and special lighting decorated with fancy stuff belonging to different cultures of the world.

One of the most gorgeous sets is the French ceramic artwork with the portrait paintings of Napoleon and the royal family on them. A unique Romanian silver decorative stuff with fruit designs on it shine in one of the corners of the hall. This silver bowl was a gift from Nicolae Ceaușescu. Two unique non-animate nature paintings by Iranian master artists, Mohsen Forouqi and Bahman Mohasses, catch the eyes of the visitors. World celebrities’ carpet is another wonder that glazes on the floor. Other small Kermani carpets, with woven designs of Persian myths like Sheikh-e-San’an and the Christian girl, tempt every onlooker. Crystal check vases and dishes, French bronze decorative artifacts, one ornamental citadel, and an embellishing column that symbolizes a traditional Persian tavern, inside- corners are really bewitching. 

The rooms that are accessible from the very entrance hall of Niavaran Palace are the private cinema room, dining hall, reception hall, waiting room, and the blue salon. The reception hall is specifically for welcoming guests. The tall reflective windows generously welcome the sunlight in. The elegance of this room was provided with mythological figure busts of Persian legends, Traditional paintings, a classical piano that had been a gift from the German embassy, and a few luxurious Persian rugs are among the eye-catching objects of this room. The south corner of Niavaran Palace has a grand hall for dining. The red carpet of Isfahan- in Abbassi style has covered the hall floor. Other decorations are gifts from Britain, Check Republic, and Germany. On the contrary, the sitting room is a cozy, dark room very suitable for a calm sitting. The unique lighting of this room, together with the green tapestry, creates a very calm space. Decorations of this room symbolize the cultures of different countries, like South-American clay pots, Bakhtiari carpet, two valuable foreign paintings and a Japanese vase of the nineteenth century, and a decorative golden dish which was a gift from Richard Nickson in 1937, and two brilliant papier-mache art vases.

The last section of Niavaran Palace is the cinema hall with the related technical requirements like an apart room and a unique aluminum chandelier that adds up to the modern style of the cinema room. On the north side of Niavaran Palace, there is a grand hall for hosting VIP guests. White plaster modeling columns with crystal chandeliers are really astonishing for the visitors who enter the room. An artificial blue pond is exactly in front of the hall that is matched with the room curtains. A small, classic room is located on the west-south side of the palace specified for waiting. Two landscape paintings by the famous woman painter, Iran Doroodi, and a Pakistani emblem which was the gift of the government in 1976.

The half story, which is for official use, is designed with a painting that is a view of the Shemiran area of Tehran. A Buda statue from Pakistan belonging to the third century B.C. and a wooden stand-curtain with Chinese miniatures have added extra beauty to the palace office. Finally, the upper level of Niavaran palace is a fairy environment particular for the private life of the king and the queen. The royal outfits, traditional Persian-style shoes, Persian Kashan rugs, a collection of wooden dolls, Russian fabrics, bronze statues, Chinese busts, taxidermy birds, and kids’ rooms are unique pieces that attract every observer.

Last but not least, is the sunroof of Niavaran Palace very singular in its own type. This architectural style is actually a natural type of air-conditioning that has caused a luxurious look to the modern palace. Other sections, like the maintenance and security room, renovation room, exhibition room, and the hall of manuscripts, are parts of Niavaran Palace that have turned the palace into a complex. The palace library, Jahannama museum, inscription garden, royal automobile exhibition, Ahmad Shahi building, and most importantly, Sahebqaraniah side palace are the side sections within the palace complex. Just come and enjoy the beauty of modern Iran symbolically gathered in Niavaran palace.