Mausoleum Doors

These doors originally opened into the mausoleum, or tomb, of Imamzada Sulayman, the son of a spiritual leader in Iran, where Shia (Shi'ite) Islam became the state religion in the 16th century. The doors' intricately carved and inlaid decoration is typical of the ornamentation in religious buildings and includes inscriptions in praise of Ali, son-in-law of the prophet Muhammad and the leader of Shia Muslims. Panels with radiating star designs evoke the eternal heavens. The maker's full name, carved in the lower right panel, indicates that he was the son of a carpenter and confirms that crafts such as woodcarving were practiced by generations within the same family.