Tabriz Historic Bazaar

The Tabriz Historic Bazaar Complex (بازار تبریز, Bâzâr-e Tabriz) is a network of covered brick lanes, caravanserais, domed halls, mosques and schools in the centre of Tabriz, often described as one of the largest covered bazaars in the world. A market has stood here for many centuries on the trade routes between Asia and Europe, the buildings you see were largely rebuilt after an earthquake in 1780, and the whole complex became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2010.

A market for the world

Tabriz sits where roads from Anatolia, the Caucasus, Mesopotamia and the Iranian plateau meet, and its bazaar grew rich on that position. Medieval writers from al-Muqaddasi in the 10th century to Yaqut, Ibn Battuta and Hamdallah Mustawfi describe its markets, and Marco Polo, passing through in the late 13th century, called Tabriz a great city of trade where merchants from many lands met.

The peak came twice. Under the Mongol Ilkhans, Tabriz was the capital of an empire stretching from Anatolia to Afghanistan, a story told on our page Tabriz under the Ilkhans. Then in the 16th century it was the first capital of the Safavids. Even after the court moved to Qazvin and Isfahan, the bazaar remained the main market of north-western Iran, trading with Ottoman and Russian merchants.

Earthquakes repeatedly destroyed the city. After the great earthquake of 1780 most of the bazaar was rebuilt in brick, and that late 18th- and 19th-century fabric is what survives today. UNESCO singles out how the buildings were funded and run: through religious endowments (vaqf) and tax exemptions that kept merchants, craftsmen and schools working together.

The bazaar’s merchants also played a political role. During the Constitutional Revolution, Tabriz held out against the shah’s forces in 1908–1909, and the bazaar was at the heart of that resistance; see The Siege of Tabriz and Sattar Khan.

How the bazaar is organised

The complex is not a single building but a whole quarter. Its parts have their own names:

• Râsteh (lanes): long covered streets lined with small shops, each lane traditionally given to one trade.
• Timcheh: domed halls, often very tall, used for wholesale trade.
• Sarâ and kârvânsarâ: two-storey courtyards with storerooms and offices, where caravans once unloaded.
• Dâlân: passages linking lanes and courtyards.
• Mosques, madrasas and bathhouses built into the same fabric, including the Jameh Mosque of Tabriz on the edge of the bazaar.

What to look at

Amir Bazaar

The Amir Bazaar is the gold and jewellery quarter, built in the Qajar period around a series of courtyards. Its shopfronts and vaults are among the most carefully restored in the complex.

The carpet halls

Tabriz is one of the great carpet cities of Iran, and the Mozaffarieh timcheh, a late Qajar hall with a high brick dome, is where many carpet dealers trade. Rugs are stacked by size and knot count, and dealers are often happy to explain the differences between Tabriz, Heriz and other weaves.

Domes and brickwork

Walk slowly and look up. The vaults and domes use many different brick patterns, and at the crossings light falls from openings in the domes. Some of the halls, such as the great domed timchehs, are among the finest brick interiors in Iran.

Trades and food

Other lanes are given to shoes, copper, spices, dried fruit, nuts and sweets. Look for local specialities such as qorabiyeh almond cakes, and for the tea houses tucked into the courtyards.

Muharram

The bazaar is also a religious space. During the month of Muharram, and especially on Tasua and Ashura, it hosts mourning ceremonies, with lanes draped in black and processions passing through.

Practical notes

• When: mornings on working days are best. Most shops close on Fridays and religious holidays, and during Muharram the atmosphere changes completely. Check current information.
• Language: most people in the bazaar speak Azerbaijani Turkish among themselves and Persian with visitors.
• Buying carpets: take your time, compare, and ask about origin and knot density. Bargaining is normal and polite.
• Photos: ask before photographing people or the inside of shops.
• Safety: follow your own government’s travel advice for Iran.

For the rest of the city, including the Blue Mosque and the Arg, see our guide to Tabriz, and compare this bazaar with the Grand Bazaar of Tehran.