From the preface of the book:
The first volume of the Ganjnameh series introduces the traditional mansions of Kashan, which can be considered a superb collection of the architecture of the Qajar period, i.e., architecture that has preserved numerous unique values of that period up to the present. It may be confidently asserted that rarely a traditional town can be found to house a comparable collection. Alongside their harmony and unity, the mansions of Kashan display also a broad variety in their design types, revealing the artistic capabilities of past architects in designing and creating space in the strictest sense.
Kambiz Haji-Qassemi
Spring 1992
Cover photo by Hossein Farahani
It has been seventeen years since the first edition of Mansions of Kashan got published. During this period, the Ganjnameh series has gotten better known in architectural circles, while also traditional houses of Kashan have become the focus of more attention. Some of the houses introduced in the first edition pictured in a ruined state have fortunately been restored or reconstructed in a sturdy and orderly manner as of today. Some of these houses are among featured attractions of present-day Kashan, and the destination of myriad visitors from many, sometimes very distant, locations. However though, some of the houses previously introduced have been demolished by now. But altogether, the true prominence and value of the mansions of Kashan has been restored now to a great degree in people’s views. Many books and papers have been published on subjects such as the town fabric as well as mansions of Kashan, and many discussions and seminars have been held on this subject during this period, all of which indicate a more interested approach of architectural researchers toward the subject. Moreover, it has been a few years that the first volume of this series has been out of print.
In this new edition, due to some restrictions, we have not added to the number of buildings introduced. Yet, all the text has been revised, and all the drawings have been reviewed and digitized. In addition, new higher quality photographs have replaced previous images, and also in some cases, clearer pictures have been added from the new image archive. The new text has been edited and repaginated in the style of other later volumes of the series. In this way, the book is practically anewed, especially with the efforts of Ms. Maryam-dokht Moosavi Rozati and Mr. Kayvan Jourabchi, both who are longtime partners of the Ganjnameh team, as well as other partners to whom I am truly grateful.
Kambiz Haji-Qassemi
Spring 2013
The photography of this volume’s new edition was done by Hossein Farahani with the highest number of photos and the other members of Ganjnameh’s photography team in 2008 and 2009. The photos were taken digitally. Some photos of the previous publication of the book which were slid films were reused for the recent one due to the buildings’ destruction and substandard reconstruction. Nematollah Shojaee and Amir Hasan Beigi are the other members of the re-photographing team. Behnam Ghelich Khani, Jalal Yashmi, Reza Tazrian, Moeen Mohammadi and Keyvan Joorabchi were analogue photographers of the book.
Some pages of volume one; Mansions of Kashan
