Jame Mosque, Borujerd

Situated in Do-Dangeh district, on Ja’fari Avenue, the Ja’me mosque of Borujerd is a significant historic monument in Lorestan province. The construction of this mosque is attributed to a certain Hamuyeh, or Hamuleh, said to have been appointed by the Abi-Dolaf rulers as the governor of Borujerd in the 3rd century A.H. [ 9th c. A. D]
Judging by the evidence gathered, continuous works of construction, reconstruction and restoration within the perimeter of the Ja’me mosque of Borujerd are confirmed ever since the 3rd century up to the present; the culmination of this activity occurring in the Saljuq period. The architectural works done here in the 4th and 5th centuries have been compared – owing to the execution of the main pillars, the round based pseudo-columns, the brick decorations – to the mausoleum of Amir Esma’il the Samanid in Bukhara. The plan of the mosque’s dome chamber and that of its secondary aisles at the corners of the perimeter have been likened to those of Heidaryyah Qazvin and the Ja’me Mosque of Golpayegan. Assuming seven periods of restoration and essential repair, it is said that the most ancient part of the ensemble is its principle dome construction, now surrounded by adjunctions of later periods.
Studies have shown that, between the 6th and 9th centuries A.H [12th – 15th c. A.D], repair works were repeatedly carried out in this building often accompanied by modifications to architectural elements of previous times and that again in the 9th ,11th, 12th and 13th centuries, alongside the gradual addition of various sections, the main building (dome chamber) also underwent alterations.
The portico and the two minarets flanking it, as well as the eastern and western prayer halls and the shops, are parts that were added to the main domed building in these historic periods. The portico and minarets of the Ja’me mosque are said to have been built in 1209 A.H [1794/5 A.D], as an adjunction to its lofty arch built under Ma’mun and Mo’tassem.
The religious and poetic inscriptions visible upon the entrance arch and on the wooden minbar and door of the mosque speak of these architectural alterations in the course of history. This mosque has two entrances, on its eastern and western sides.
The interior façade of the dome-covered space, beside the architectural adjunction made in various periods, incorporates refined decorations, including an exquisite epigraph on the southern wall, above the mihrab. In an architectural Kufic script composition of chiseled and stamped bricks, this inscription – the middle section of which as become confused – says:
“In the Name of Allah. O God, forgive the commissioner of this dome, this lofty summit... Abu-l-’Ezz Muhammad, son of Taher , son of Sa’id may Allah perpetuate his existence.”
On the arch above this inscription, handsome tile works can be admired on the squinches. Beside the majesty and importance of this building and the delicacy of its architectural fabric, note must be made of the mosque’s nine-stepped minbar, of particular importance. It was crafted by carpenter Dervish Yar-Muhammad upon an order from the Safavid king, Shah Abbas II, and bears a poetic epigraph the last diptych of which gives, in abjad figures, the construction date of the minbar [1069 A.H. = 1658/9 A.D].
On the western entrance door, two other diptychs are carved, which beside the construction date of the mosque [1092 A.H.], gives the name of its builder. The Ja’me Mosque of Borujerd is recorded under No. 228 in the Inventory of National Artifacts of Iran.

Imam Mosque Borujerd
This monument was built in the Qajar period atop the ruins of an older mosque. The stone inscription on the surface of its western portico bear the date 1248 A.H. [1832/3 A.D], and on the wooden door opening on Ja’fari Avenue, the date 1291 A.H. {1874/5] can be read. This wooden door is of great artistic value. The plan of the mosque is of the four-arced type, with three main entrances. The western entrance gives access to Davatgaran Bazaar. The mosque’s yard measures 61×47 m, and the roof arch of the southern prayer all has a height of approximately 17 m. the interior decorations of the mosque consist of handsome tile works stucco carving and moqarnas chiseling. The stones of the northern portico’s main base are also decorated with very fine patterns.