February 2010 – “Esther’s Tomb” Featured on MyJewishLearning
Street view, Tomb of Esther and Mordechai, Hamadan, Iran, 1972
(Photo Courtesy of Yassi Gabbay)
Just in time for Purim, MyJewishLearning.com published a Diarna project article, “Esther’s Tomb: Iran’s Jewish queen defies decay and dissolution,” on the shrine traditionally venerated as the tomb of Esther and Mordecai. The site, located in Iran’s Kurdish region, at the foot of Mt. Alvand and in the center of the city of Hamadan, has a fascinating history all its own. The article features rare photos and illustrations, as well as an exclusive video interview with Yassi (Elias) Gabbay, the architect who restored the shrine in the 1970s. Here is an excerpt:
…Until the 1970s, the shrine was hidden away in a crowded part of Hamadan, surrounded by houses, and only accessible through a narrow dirt alley. But in 1971, in honor of a national celebration of 2,500 years of Iranian monarchy, the Iranian Jewish Society commissioned architect Yassi (Elias) Gabbay to undertake a renovation.
Houses around the tomb were purchased and demolished, making the shrine accessible from the main street via a bridge Gabbay constructed over the new courtyard and a partially-underground synagogue chapel he also built, to complete the shrine complex. The subterranean chapel has a skylight in the shape of a Star of David that can be seen in Google Earth, quite possible making the Islamic Republic in Iran home to the only Jewish Star visible from space.
