Imam Reza Shrine is a well-known and popular monument of which has been developed during history. This shrine is the biggest mosque in the world, in terms of area and it contains the Mausoleum of Ali ibn Moosa, known as Imam Reza. He is one of the descendants of Muslims prophet, Muhammad and is respected and cherished by Muslims, particularly Shias.

Imam Reza Shrine, the heart of Mashhad and millions of Shia all around the world

Imam Reza Shrine is a well-known and popular monument of which has been developed during history. This shrine is the biggest mosque in the world, in terms of area and it contains the Mausoleum of Ali ibn Moosa, known as Imam Reza. He is one of the descendants of Muslims prophet, Muhammad and is respected and cherished by Muslims, particularly Shias. According to an estimate in 2007, every year, more than 12 million Shia, both from Iran and other countries, visit this complex. Imam Reza Shrine is also ranked as the second complex all around the world in terms of capacity. 

Who was Ali ibn Moosa? 

Ali ibn Moosa was born in Medina and he is the eighth Imam of Twelve Shia Imams. Under the order of Mamun, the Abbasid caliph of the time, Imam Reza moved to Khorasan (Mashhad) where he spent the most critical part of his life when he became an important and influential role both in religion and politics. His prominent status as a guide for the public that has made him a religious figure of time, transformed his shrine to one of the most popular religious places for Shia. This monument has gone through constant development through time, as the shrine was respected by different kings and governments of Iran.

Imam Reza Shrine as the most engaging and extensive Shrine of Iran

Imam Reza Shrine is known as the biggest and the most outstanding religious place in Iran. Due to its long lifespan, this place is now known as universal architectural heritage. Imam Reza Shrine has received constant attention in a different era and through history, different extensions have been added to the original shrine. The original shrine covers the area of almost 270000 square meters. The complex contains seven courtyards which yield to the total coverage of six hundred thousand square meters for the entire complex. 

In contrast to the urban area of its hots city, Mashhad, the Imam Reza Shrine is mostly referred to as the most significant element of the city. Formation and developments of Mashhad undoubtedly indebted to Imam Reza Shrine. Since the complex has been developed progressively along with Mashhad itself, the relation between the complex and city in different periods of time has made a unique mark on the culture and personality of the city itself. This complex has significantly influenced the economic condition of Mashhad as well. Imam Reza shrine is nowadays is mostly known as an artistic, social, religious and political center of the city to further establish the remarkable and deep relation with the urban area. 

The structure, employed decorative elements, surfaces and facades, general perspective and the function of the shrine are all symbolized to the religious unification and ideology of which remain same during its a thousand year of evolution. Glorious elements, such as mirrors, stone or plaster works have been employed for the decoration of Imam Reza shrine all of which has added to its outstanding value on universal scales. 

Qubba is the gilded dome of Imam Reza Shrine which is one of the exceptional feature of this complex due to its height and the quality of material for its construction. The overall height of the complex from the ground level is  31.20 m of which 18.80 m are walls and 13.60 m is the height of the dome. 

Imam Reza Shrine and its universal value

Architecture, history, and influence of Imam Reza Shrine, as the biggest mosque of the world undoubtedly have brought a lot of attention to this complex. The latter has put this complex on the tentative list of UNESCO world heritage center. On universal scales, the complex of Imam Reza Shrine has received attention due to several factors of which we are going to review a few of them. 

The complex of Imam Reza Shrine is a collection of diverse values of technology, culture, art, and architecture: As mentioned before, the entire complex have been established and developed through more than a millennium. In each different period, due to the importance and high respect of governments and kings for the holy shrine, high levels of art, creativity, and talent have been employed for developments of the time and creating artistic structures. Though each period is unique for its own theme of art, architecture, and technology. Although the entire complex is in harmony, as at each phase the entire artistic values have been respected by developers, yet it is so diverse in terms of art and cultural values. This fact also resembles the artistic and architectural progress of Mashhad, the host city. 

The complex of Imam Reza is an influential masterpiece: This structure is known as a prototype of other important structures of the region such as mosques, mystics, and memorials which have been built in different eras, including Qajar, Safavid, Ilkhanid, and Seljuq. This is mainly due to the fact that development of Imam Reza Shrine spreads over several centuries.

Imam Reza Shrine is a complex of museum collections, different buildings and urban structures and infrastructures. Due to its rich architecture, history, and culture, it is comparable to several well-known and rather religious monuments in the world, such as: 

-   Saint Peter’s Tomb in the Vatican: Comparable with Imam Reza Shrine due to their construction history, principles and iconic values within the urban context of Mashhad and Vatican. 
-     Mahabodhi Temple in India: Comparable with Imam Reza Shrine as both served their host city as a development center for religious philosophy. 
-    Imam Ali’s Shrine in Najaf, Iraq: Comparable with Imam Reza Shrine in terms of surrounding structures and their unique decorations.

Mashhad is one of the historical cities of Iran which originally has been constructed based on the system of Shia’s belief. This city has been built on two-main axes, joining the center where Imam Reza Shrine is placed, remarking it as the heart of the city. This complex is the most important and famous monument of Mashhad which has played an influential role in the development of the city and in introducing Iran’s architecture and art of different centuries to the world.