mohamad mashhadinushabadi
Abstract
The ancient village of Joshaqan in the region of Kashan, which is located near the rocky hills, has long been a place of stone extraction. In the Safavid cemetery of this village, there ...
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The ancient village of Joshaqan in the region of Kashan, which is located near the rocky hills, has long been a place of stone extraction. In the Safavid cemetery of this village, there are thirty large tombstones that are valuable in terms of history, art and cultural and social content. The present paper, which is based on field study, while paying attention to the artistic and visual characteristics of Joshaqan tombstones, the text and content of the inscriptions was carefully examined. Then, the designs and content of the stone inscriptions were evaluated from different aspects. The examination includes the form, decorations, type and quality of lines, and especially the religious and cultural content of Shiite inscriptions, identification of the names and nominal culture, families, occupations and the dating of the tombstones. The religious content of the inscriptions is mainly related to the Shiite slogan of salawat-i kabira. Moreover, these stones were briefly compared with other examples in Iran. The results depict a part of the social history and culture and livelihood of the people of Joshaqan in the Safavid period as an example of the culture of all parts of Iran. Of course, the livelihood of the people of Joshqan was affected by the stone-cutting industry, and the owners of a number of tombstones were stone-cutters or members of the stone-cutting family. Also, the large tombstones of this cemetery have lost their use with the end of the Safavid period, a trend that is more or less present in other places as well.
