The Nasir-ol-Molk Mosque (; ), also known as the Pink Mosque (), is a mosque located in Shiraz, in the province of Fars, Iran. Completed in 1888 CE, the Qajar era mosque is located in the Gowd-e Araban district of Shiraz, south of Lotfali Khan Zand Street, next to the ShÃÂh ChérÃÂgh Mosque.
The mosque includes extensive stained glass in its façade, and displays other traditional elements such as the Panj KÃÂse ("five concaved") design.
The mosque was added to the Iran National Heritage List in 1955, administered by the Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization of Iran. It is a major tourist attraction in Shiraz, especially at sunrise when sunlight hits the stained glass.
The mosque was constructed between 1876 and 1888 and is under the protection of the Endowment Foundation of Nasir-ol-Molk. Construction of the mosque was commissioned by Mirza Hasan Ali Nasir ol-Molk, an aristocratic lord of Shiraz and the son of Ali Akbar Qavam ol-Molk, the kalantar of Shiraz.
The mosque was completed in the Qajar style; designed by Mohammad Hasan-e-MemÃÂr, a Persian architect who had also built the noted Eram Garden before the Nasir-ol-Molk Mosque, Mohammad Hosseini Shirazi, and Mohammad RezÃÂ KÃÂshi-SÃÂz-e-Ã Â irÃÂzi. There is a poem inscribed on marble at the mosque's entrance and the mosque contains extensive use of blue, yellow, pink, azure, and white tiles.
The Nasir ol-Molk Mosque has two Shabestans, and the interior decoration of the western (or winter) Shabestan consists of a series of arches and vaults and two rows of six columns that divide the interior into smaller sections. The western Shabestan is connected to the sahn by seven wooden doors, each decorated by Gereh Chini, with extensive use of stained glass. The passage of light through the stained glass in red, azure, yellow, orange, and green colors is a major tourist attraction. There is a shallow and wide pool in the middle of the sahn. The Nasir ol-Molk Mosque has two north and south porches, each different from the other. The northern porch of the mosque has three half-arches on three sides, connected to the sahn by the fourth half-arch.
Although stained glass is popular in churches, the earliest discovered was in Syria from the 7th century CE. There is evidence of techniques and recipes for obtaining stained glass by the Persian chemist Jabir ibn Hayyan in his book Kitab al-Durra al-maknuna () published in the 8th century. Orsi windows are windows made of a mixture of wood and colorful glass during the Safavid and Qajar eras. Orsi differs from stained glass used in many churches and Ottoman mosques which serve as illuminated images rather than a source of light. Light is a major feature in many mosques considering it being a major symbol of God in Islam. This is mentioned in the Quran: