The Persian Sufi poet and theoretician of mysticism, Farid al-Din Attar (ca. 1145-1221), died in his hometown of Nishapur during the Mongol conquests. Located in the southeast part of the city, the structure currently standing over his grave probably dates from the eighteenth century, when it replaced an earlier building that had been commissioned by the Timurid vizier Amir Alishir Navaei.

The dome chamber is octagonal in plan and its exterior is articulated with deep arched recesses. Inside, Attar’s grave is marked by an elaborate tombstone that remains from the Timurid period (1486).

During the restorations of the 1960s, along with the construction of the new tombs for Khayyam and Kamal al-Molk, the exterior of Attar’s tomb was decorated with tiles and the surrounding area was designed as a garden.

Sources:

Golombek, Lisa and Donald Wilber. 1988. The Timurid Architecture of Iran and Turan. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 338.

O'Kane, Bernard. 1987. Timurid Architecture in Khurasan. Costa Mesa. C.A.: Mazda Publishers, 331-334.