Analysis of the Tomb and Spiritual Place of Shams Tabrizi in Khoy Based on Historical Documents and Architectural Studies

The subject of the end of Shams Tabrizi’s career has attracted researchers for a long time. In recent decades, it has also attracted the attention of international cultural societies. Since different locations have been proposed as the tomb of Shams Tabrizi through the years, so how to analyze the attribution of these locations to Shams Tabrizi could be considered an issue. Regarding the cultural and tourism importance of the Shams Tabrizi tomb at the national and international levels, determining the location of this tomb is the goal of this study. Therefore, the main question is: which of the attributed sites to Shams Tabrizi is really his tomb? In doing so, the suggestion that “the minaret” of Shams in Khoy belongs to the tomb of Shams Tabrizi was examined. In order to answer this question and test the supposition, the historical documents related to the tombs attributed to Shams Tabrizi were subjected to qualitative content analysis. The analysis of the first-hand documents obtained from domestic and foreign sources, especially Ottoman sources, makes the location of Shams Tabrizi’s tomb in Khoy acceptable and confirms the suggestion of the study. Analytical examination of the minarets drawn by Metraqchi showed that the architecture of the third minaret is different from the minarets on both sides of the dome of the Shams’ Tomb. The textual and semantic analysis of the discourse of public culture, including the creation of works of art, the use of holy expressions, local names, and the endowment of the proceeds of public places, showed the spiritual position of the personality and tomb of Shams Tabrizi. Determining the location of Shams Tabrizi’s tomb, analyzing its architectural features and determining the spiritual position of Shams Tabrizi is the final achievement of this study.