I heard of an old minaret, which I found before the police found me. We cannot say that Robert Byron visited the Friday Mosque of Semnan. It is more correct to say that he passed by and took a photo, at least as long as we trust what's written in his travelogue. Also, he does not … Continue reading The Minaret of Semnan
Such classic, cubic perfection, so lyrical and yet so strong, reveals a new architectural world to the European. In Maragha, on the 17th of October 1933, Byron visits three monuments: the observatory, a cave with altars (not better identified), and, last but certainly not the least, the Gunbad-i Surkh. Robert Byron's fascination for tomb … Continue reading Gunbad-i Surkh
the Rasatkhana, which means 'star-house' or observatory; but none had ever seen it On the 17th of October 1933, Robert Byron visited the Rasatkhana, or better, the place where the Rasatkhana used to be. His visit was brief, presumably, since nothing of the once famous observatory remains. Apparently, he did not take even one photo. … Continue reading Rasatkhana: the Observatory of Maragha
Every time I start a book review I ask myself why I bought the book. In this case, I think I had been intrigued by the name, and I decided to 'buy' it once I realized it could be downloaded for free (legally), without me chasing the publisher to have a review copy. The full … Continue reading The Making of the Islamic Heritage
The Road to Oxiana is considered Byron’s masterpiece. In the form of a travelogue, the book is an accurate reportage of the long, exotic journey of Byron and his friend Christopher Sykes. It is extremely romantic thinking of Robert Byron, on those snowy days blocked in Qala i Now, writing the diary at length, writing down … Continue reading The story of the book: The Road to Oxiana
built of plum-red brick [...] transferred as it were from an English kitchen garden to the service of Koranic texts Robert Byron arrives in Maragha on the 16th of October 1933 where he visits and takes pictures of one of the three tombs that are to be found there: the Gundab-i Qabus. Byron himself recognizes the … Continue reading Gunbad-i Qabud
it had once been a mosque, [...] one of the biggest ever built During his visit to Tabriz on the 15th of October 1933, Byron records two monuments: one is the despised Blue Mosque, the other one is the Arg-e Tabriz, literally the Forterss of Tabriz. The short description that Byron gives of the building is quite … Continue reading Arg-i Tabriz
the wreck of the famous Blue Mosque When Robert Byron, on the 15th of October 1933, arrives in Tabriz, he records two monuments: the Blue Mosque and the Ark. In the case of the Blue Mosque no description is provided, at all. The author simply records in about 10 words that in Tabriz there was the … Continue reading The Blue Mosque in Tabriz
One thinks of Brunelleschi The Tomb of Uljaytu is the first great monument Robert Byron saw in Persia as he would recall 6 months later his first visit, on the 12th of October 1933. On that occasion, Byron praise the monument as an example of Central Asian greatness and virility [sic!]. The ‘gigantic memorial’, in … Continue reading The Tomb of Uljaytu or the Dome of Sultaniyya
Robert Byron was born in an eccentric Victoria middle-class Wilshire family in 1905. Though the family was not rich, his parents managed to send him to Eton and Marton College in Oxford, where he obtained a third-class degree in History in 1926. Robert Byron's personality was already well developed in his late boyhood or early … Continue reading Robert Byron: a short life, a big personality
