Tomb of Saadi

Saadi of Shiraz wrote in the thirteenth century and his Gulistan and Bustan are among the foundational works of Persian literature, read and memorised for centuries and quoted in ordinary speech to this day. His tomb sits in a garden in the north-east of the city, rebuilt in its present form in the 1950s: an open pavilion of blue-tiled arches over the grave, with his verses in tilework around the walls, set among cypress, orange trees and water channels. Below the garden is an underground chamber with a pool fed by a qanat, holding fish, reached down a stair, which visitors throw coins into. Iranians come here as a matter of course, and reading aloud at the tomb is normal rather than performative.

What you actually see

• The tiled open pavilion - blue arches over the poet's grave.
• Verses in tilework - his lines set around the walls.
• The underground qanat pool - a fish pool fed by an old water channel.
• Iranians reading at the tomb - the ordinary use of the place.

When to go

March to May and October to November. One to two hours. Evenings are busiest with local visitors and the pavilion is lit. Spring brings orange blossom to the garden, which is the Shiraz signature.

Honest expectations

The present building is twentieth century, not medieval, which surprises some visitors. It is small and quickly seen. The site is far from the centre and needs a taxi. Modest dress applies.

Nearby

The tomb of Hafez is closer to the centre; the Quran Gate is on the road between them.