Husayniyah-i Nu-Abad

Na'in, Iran

Husayniyah-i Nu-Abad (also spelled Nugabad) is located in the old city of Na'in just east of the Naranj Castle in the neighborhood of Nu-Abad, from which it derives its name. The institution is dated to 1916-1917/1335 AH. It comprises a public square (maydan), a roofed hall (husayniyah-i sarpushidah), a water dispenser (saqqa-khanah), and a kitchen. Several warehouses adjoin the husayniyah structures, and the mosque known as Khwajah Khidr is located nearby.

The public square occupies an irregular rectangular space oriented northwest to southeast and is accessible through six passageways leading from neighborhood streets: two passageways enter the square on either end of its northwestern facade, two on either end of its southeastern facade, and one each in the center of its northeastern and southwestern facades. An octagonal platform at the center of the square served as a public stove (alugah) and also provided access through a staircase to an underground channel (qanat) that brought fresh water into the neighborhood from the surrounding hills.

The southeastern side of the square is dominated by a covered seating area (shah-nishin) in the form of an arched iwan that opens onto the center of the facade and rises above the height of the rest of the building. Flanking this seating area are two archways on either side, two of which lead to passageways off the square. The southwestern side of the square has six arched bays, one of which rises slightly higher than the other five and gives access to the roofed hall of the husayniyah and one of which gives onto a passageway. The northwestern and southeastern sides both have six arched bays, nearly equal in width and all rising to the same single-story height. 

The roofed hall of the husayniyah is flanked by alcoves surmounted by balconies on a second story. A dome constructed of decorative brickwork with a squat lantern cupola covers the hall.

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