In 2014, the President of UNESCO General Conference, visited Kashan and nominated Borujerdi House as the most beautiful historical house in Asia. In terms of tourist attraction and popularity, this house was a top choice by UNESCO in 2015.
Borujerdi house is considered to be the bride of Kashan’s houses.
It is a true gem of Iranian Qajar architecture and perhaps the most spectacular sight in Kashan. The Borujerdi house was built during the second half of the 19th century by a famous merchant from Kashan, called Mr.Natanzi. This man is better known as Borujerdi, because he exported goods from Borujerd to Kashan. He became the son in law of Tabatabaei, another merchant and owner of Tabatabaei House.
Mr.Borujerdi had fallen in love with a girl from the Tabatabaei family. However, Mr.Tabataei had his own rules for giving away his daughter. Therefore, he showed Mr.Borujerdi his house and made the bachelor understand that he would let him become his son in law only if he built an equally beautiful house for his daughter. Surprisingly, not only did he build the house in a short amount of time, but he also dedicated the house to his wife to impress her family.
This house took 18 years to build and was finally completed in 1893. It is said that 150 masons, plaster carvers, mirror cutters, painters and other artists took part in its construction.
The architecture of this two-story house is similar to other traditional Iranian houses. These houses which are usually located in religious desert areas, have two sections. The first one is the andaruni (outer) and the second one is biruni (inner). As a result, the inside of the house is not visible from the outside.
You will enter this house by passing through a relatively high and sloping porch and corridor. Then you will reach the northern part of the central courtyard, around which the whole building has been designed.
In the middle of the court yard, there is a large rectangular pond, to the north of which is the winter residence and to the south is the summer residence. All around the pond, pomegranate trees have been planted to help cool the air, and transform the romantic atmosphere of the house.
To the east of the courtyard are three rooms with few decorations and a common corridor connecting the winter and summer residence together.
Upon entering the winter section of the mansion, you will be mesmerized by the amazing ceiling of the main hall. In this part, you’ll be surrounded by the amazing plaster work and mirrors of masterful artists. The designs on the walls consists of flowers, birds, animals and the hunting grounds which were created with delicate details.
The summer section of the house is the place that will shock even the most experienced world traveler. It is the main building where most of the decorations and paintings are seen. The main hall of Borujerdi House has a domed ceiling with geometric patterns and outstanding ornaments. In fact, from the outside the roof looks like a desert house in a fairytale story. If you enter this part in summer, the humidity and coolness of the space will surprise you. This is due to the two large windcatchers on the roof which act like two very large natural air conditioners.
If you want to travel back to the 19th century, the Borujerdi house isn’t the only place in Kashan that you can visit. If you find this place interesting, just wait until you see the Tabatabaei house, Ameri House, Abbasi House and the Fin garden.