An ancient complex with a dazzling architecture

Ganj Ali Khan Complex is a Safavid-era building complex, located in the old center of the city of Kerman, Iran. The complex is composed of a school, a square, a caravanserai, a bathhouse, an Ab Anbar (water reservoir), a mint, a mosque, and a bazaar.

• Ganjali Khan Complex

Ganjali Khan Complex is a Safavid-era building complex, located in the old center of the city of Kerman, Iran. The complex is composed of a school, a square, a caravanserai, a bathhouse, an Ab Anbar (water reservoir), a mint, a mosque, and a bazaar. This complex was built by Ganjali Khan who governed Kerman and in the Isfahani style of architecture. There are several poem inscriptions laid inside the complex that decoding of the last hemistich smartly indicates the exact date when these places have been built.

• Ganjali Square

In ancient Iran, the squares of the cities were established near the governorships and were places for gatherings and ceremonies. The architecture is Similar to Naqsh-e Jahan Square in Isfahan and Mir Chakhmagh Square in Yazd is surrounded by urban elements such as bazaars, Caravanserais, and schools.

• Ganjali Bathhouse

The entrance of the building is painted with ornaments of the Safavid era. It is composed of a disrobing room, cold room, and hot room, all covered with domes carried on squinches. It is composed of a disrobing room, cold room, and hot room, all covered with domes carried on squinches. The Ganjali Baths are unique works of architecture decorated with exquisite tile works, paintings, stuccos, and arches. The bathhouse was converted into an anthropological museum in 1971. In the closet section and main yard of the bath, there are many lifelike statues. These statues were designed at Tehran University's faculty of fine arts in 1973 and then transferred to this museum.

• Ganjali Bazaar
  The bazaar is located in the southern part of Ganjali Square. Inside, the bazaar is decorated with exquisite plasterwork and wall paintings and although they are 400 years old, they are still well-preserved. The bazaar is 93 meters long and is connected to Ganjali square through 16 Iwans and vaults.

• Ganjali Caravanserai and Mosque
  The plan of the caravanserai is based on the four-Iwan typology, with double-story halls centered on tall Iwans enveloping four sides of an open courtyard. There is an octagonal fountain at the center of the courtyard which is chamfered at the corners. The caravanserai measures thirty-one and a half by twenty-three meters. It has a small domed mosque at one corner that measures five and a half by five meters.

• Ganjali Mint
  The mint’s construction started in 1598 and ended in 1625. The interior decorations consist of ochre plasterwork and brickwork. The building has a tall dome crowned by a cupola to admit light and vent air. The mint was converted into a numismatics museum in 1970. The museum displays coins from different periods such as the Parthian, Sassanid, Safavid, and Afsharid periods.

• What is the best time to go?
  To get there, every day is appropriate. But, to benefit the advantage of this travel, we suggest our traveler October to March, because the weather is cooling down and it is easy to access other tourist attractions of Kerman city.

• Getting there: 
  To access Ganjalikan complex, you can visit the old center of Kerman Province.