Tomb of Esther and Mordechai

This mausoleum is the most celebrated shrine for Iranian Jews, who venerate it as the burial place of two biblical figures, Esther and Mordechai. According to the Book of Esther in the Old Testament, Esther, the wife of Ahasuerus (probably a transcription of Xerxes, the Achaemenid king of Persia ca. the 4th century BCE) saved the lives of her uncle Mordechai and the entire Jewish community in the Persian Empire from a sinister plot by Haman, one of the king's courtiers. The Jewish feast of Purim is based on the tale of Esther. Christians and Muslims alike venerate the shrine, which was once situated within the Jewish quarter of Hamadan. The building is attributed to the fourteenth century. Oriented toward west (Jerusalem), the mausoleum consists of a 12-meter-high domed chamber (5.3 meters per side) with secondary rooms attached to the north and east. According to historical sources, famous rabbis were buried in these rooms.