Analysis of united geometric knots in Sheikh Safi al-Din Ardabili Tomb Box

Safi al-Din Abu al-Fatah Ishaq, nicknamed "Shams al-Din" and known as "Sheikh Safi", is a mystic and poet of the seventh century AH. He is one of the famous mystics of Al-Jaito and Abu Saeed Ilkhani eras. He was born in 650 AH in a village called Kalkhoran (Kahrlan) near Ardabil. During his life, he was accompanied by great and knowledgeable people of that time, including Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi, Saadi Shirazi and others. After his death, the tomb of Sheikh Safi al-Din Ardabili was established by order of his son. A beautiful and precious box was also made by his order. This box is located under the dome of Allah (God) and in the mausoleum of Sheikh Safi al-Din, where it was his home and monastery. The engraving used on the box seems very attractive because of type of ornament using different techniques. The present study attempts to decipher geometric knots on the box with a different perspective. The purpose of this research is the structural analysis of geometric knots and the expression of transfer methods as well as the introduction of this type of knots and patterns to those interested in this type of art work. This research seeks to discover what salient features of the geometric knots used on this box. Furthermore, the current study deals with how these knots are drawn and what kind of drawing method they followed. The data of this research have been in the form of library-field (box photography). It is noteworthy that the analysis of the work has been done manually and software (Corel and Photoshop). The research method is descriptive-analytical, which is a qualitative and technical analysis. The results of this study show that the main knot of "Dah tond"(ten sharp) on this box has been implemented in a rotating manner and has been multiplied by a quarter. The method of being rotating and also the type of reproduction caused a series of other instruments such as termites (dolls), pubs, crackers, seeds (rhombuses), six loose, eight suns, six bands, etc., depending on the type of space as well as the design, is added to this knot in the final composition .