Chehel Sotun Palace in Iran (Photo: Emily O'Dell)
Reflecting Pool (Photo: Emily O'Dell)
Let go of your worries
and be completely clear-hearted,
like the face of a mirror
that contains no images.
— Rumi
I’ve got a thing for palaces in Persia. One of my favorite palaces in Iran is the Chehel Sotun Palace–its name means “Forty Columns.” But if you look closely at the photo below, you won’t be able to spot 40 columns at all–since there’s only 20 holding up this Achaemenid-inspired talar (columnar porch). To see the other 20 appear, you’ll have to look in the palace’s pool (left) to see the columns reflected back.
While these slender, wooden columns are quite a sight to behold, my favorite part of this palace is the mirror mosaics which you can see above. I won’t even try to describe them, since I think their beauty speaks for itself…
Columns (Photo: Emily O'Dell)
