Page:From Constantinople to the home of Omar Khayyam.djvu/347

 the group interesting from the standpoint of architecture as well as of history. ^

The entire precinct about Bayazid's sacred grave covers a considerable area of ground, and is entered by a double court, an outer and an inner enclosure, both of which are in a rather dilapidated condition. In the exterior court is a ruined ma- drasah, or Moslem college, built by Shah Rukh (1404-1447), son of the great Tamerlane. The entrance into the inner court is through a gateway artistically ornamented by raised designs in plaster and decorated with colored glazed tiles. Beyond this, across the square, is a handsomely embellished arched portal, on either side of which stand two conical- topped mausoleums that perpetuate hallowed names. Near the left one of these lies Bayazid's tomb ; while still again to the left is located an old flat-roofed mosque crowned by a fine minaret which imparts to the group its chief dignity.

The two cone-pointed mausoleums have each a historic inter- est irrespective of their architectural merit. The one on the left, forming part of the mosque just mentioned, is the tomb of the glorified founder of the city, Bustam Mirza, who, as already recorded, lived fifteen centuries ago. Its pointed roof, below which are alternating bands of dark and light blue fayence, retains traces of azure tiles and is surmounted by a double spindle of metal, that is now bent at an angle. Story says that the remains which lie interred beneath the monument are undecaying, the flesh, nails, and hair being all intact ; but it might be against the dictates of wisdom, as well as of hygiene, to undertake to verify the truth of this statement.^

1 The best description of these mon- I gratefully acknowledge the indebt-

uraeuts, illustrated by plates and cuts, edness.

is again to be found in Sarre, Denk- ^ Eraser (p. 337) did not venture to mdler persischer Baukunst, Lieferung test the truth of the legend regarding 1, p. 3 ; 2, p. 3 ; 6, p. 1 ; and Text- the preservation of the original ten- band, pp. 116-117. This account, sup- ant because 'a body had been depos- plemented by data from Fraser and ited there but forty days before, which Khanikofi, has been used to help out there was no reason to believe had my own notes made on the spot, and shared in this incorruptibility. ' For

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