Funding for Restoration of Kashan's Fin Garden

A 7.6-billion-rial ($200,000) budget has been earmarked this year for the restoration and maintenance of the iconic Fin Garden in Kashan, Isfahan Province.

According to Somayyeh Farhadi, director of the historical site, the money will be used to renovate the roofs of the garden's buildings, water stream path and green spaces.

"A part of the fund will be spent to strengthen the structures, particularly the Safavid Summerhouse," she told IRNA.

"The budget will also be used to conduct studies on the historical garden."

Fin Garden is a historical Persian garden built during the reign of the Safavid Dynasty and developed in later periods.

It covers 2.3 hectares with a main yard surrounded by ramparts with four circular towers. In keeping with many of the Persian gardens of this era, water features prominently in Fin Garden.

It is historically known as the location of the tragic murder of Amir Kabir, the wise Qajari prime minister, in the garden's bathhouse in 1852 on the order of an inebriated Nassereddin Shah, the Qajarid king.

According to historical accounts, Amir Kabir's opinions held weight with the king, much to the dismay of Nasserddin Shah's mother who plotted his death after growing tired of having her views challenged by the prime minister.

It is said that when the royal guards confronted Amir Kabir, he took his own life by slitting his wrists.

The summerhouse, small bath and the garden's entrance were built during the Safavid era. The summerhouse, royal bathhouse, Karimkhani Nook and the imperial room were later added to the complex.  

Fin Garden was inscribed on the list of national heritage sites in 1935. In 2012, it was declared a world heritage site by UNESCO along with eight other Persian gardens.

Although a small city, Kashan is home to 700 historical sites, of which 320 have been nationally inscribed.