Interior design and traditional motifs in religious architecture of qajar period: A case study of Nasir El-Mulk Mosque

The decorations and motifs used in traditional Iranian architecture, especially in its mosques' architecture, reveal abundant information about artistic, cultural, political, and economic characteristics of each historical period. In this thesis, the cultural features of Iran during the Qajar period, common decoration techniques and motifs in artworks, and their meaning were chosen as the focus of the study. In the first part of the study, different art periods observed throughout Iran's various regions were defined. The common motifs from these art periods were categorized into five main groups including geometric motifs, plant motifs, human and animal motifs, imaginary creature motifs, and calligraphy. Each motif group was considered in the defined historical periods. In the second part of the study, the architectural features and interior design of Nasir El-Mulk Mosque, located in the city of Shiraz and belonging to the Qajar period, was evaluated. In the third part of the study, the historical and cultural features of the Qajar period as well as Nasir El-Mulk Mosque were studied. Moreover, the structural and spatial features of this mosque and the functional and symbolic aspects of these features were considered separately. In the last part of the study, the data were evaluated comparatively and conclusions were drawn about the functional and symbolic qualities of the decorations and motifs used in the interior spaces of Nasir El-Mulk Mosque.