Chehel Sotoun

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Shah Abbas I entertaining guests Painting depicting an official banquet at court, with the Shah and his guests enjoying wine, food, dancers, and music. Ceiling fresco at Chehel Sotoun.

Chehel Sotoun (also Chehel Sotoon, Persian: چهل ستون) is a charming pavilion in the middle of a park at the far end of a long pool, in Isfahan, Iran, built by Shah Abbas II to be used for the Shah's entertainment and receptions. In this palace, Shah Abbas II and his successors would receive dignitaries and ambassadors, either on the terrace or in one of the stately reception halls.

The name, "Forty Columns," was inspired by the twenty slender wooden columns supporting the entrance pavilion, which, when reflected in the waters of the fountain, are said to appear to be forty.

As with Ali Qapu, the palace contains many frescoes and paintings on ceramic. Many of the ceramic panels have been dispersed and are now in the possession of major museums in the west. They depict specific historical scenes such as a reception for an Uzbek King in 1646, when the palace had just been completed; a banquet in honor of the King of Turkestan in 1611; the battle of Chalderan against the Osmanli King in 1514 in which the Persians fought without firearms; the welcome extended to a Mongol King who took refuge in Iran in 1544; the battle of Taher-Abad in 1510 where the Safavid Shah Ismail I vanquished and killed the Uzbek King. A more recent painting depicts Nadir Shah's victory against the Indian Army at Karnal in 1747. There are also less historical, but even more aesthetic compositions in the traditional miniature style which celebrate the joy of life and love.

As opposed to rival Ottoman architecture, which focuses on scale and grandeur, Safavid architecture targets refineness in subtlety. View of Chehel-sotoon Palace.