138 
VILLAGE OF SHEHERISTAN. 
dropped his ring, upon which the Shatir, who saw that his fate was de¬ 
cided, exclaimed, “ O King, you have broken jour word, but I’ll show 
you my submission to the last.” Upon which he stooped, picked up the 
ring, and died. In commemoration of this event, the Shatir was 
buried on the spot, and this tower, now called the Shatir’s Tomb, was 
built over his remains. 
To the eastward are the extensive ruins of the village of- Sheheristan, 
once famous for being the residence of the nobles of Ispahan, but now 
composed of only a few houses that with difficulty are to be distin¬ 
guished from the ruins by which they are surrounded. Here are 
the remains of a mausoleum, a brick building of excellent masonry, 
crowned by a cupola beautifully turned. A very high minareh is at¬ 
tached to it, but the winding stairs within it are so decayed, that it is 
impossible now to attain its summit. At this village is a bridge of solid 
sti’ucture across the Zainderood, but not kept in good repair. The 
easterly environs of Ispahan are neither so flourishing nor so populous 
as those to the westward. 
Some time after our arrival we had an opportunity of judging of 
those to the westward, in an excursion that we made to see, what are 
esteemed as great curiosities by the natives, the shaking pillars of Gu- 
ladoun. To reach them, we were conducted through narrow roads, 
that led into the midst of thick orchards, and through more cultL 
vated grounds, than any that we had yet seen in the country. The 
shaking pillars are two minarehs that flank an arched building, which 
has been erected over the tomb of an holy man. The miracle was 
exhibited to us, by sending boys to the summit of each pillar, who ap¬ 
plying all their force to shake them, made not only the pillar but the 
roof of the building below it tremble as sensibly as if they were agi¬ 
tated by an earthquake. We supposed that it proceeded from a 
defect in the architecture, but the Persians were more inclined to 
attribute it to the saint below. Our cicerone on this occasion was 
Haji Ibrahim, the King’s chief gardener, whose house was situated 
near the pillars, and where he had provided an entertainment for 
