Analysis of the Decorations and Structure of the Kufic Inscriptions of the Tomb Tower of Chihil Dukhtaran (Forty Girls) of Damghan

Chihil Dukhtaran tomb tower of Damghan is one of the unique instances that uses Kufic inscriptions. This tomb tower dates back to the 5th century AH and its builder is Asfar-e Ibn-e Kordooyeh, a Daylamite commander. From the end of the 4th century AH, he was one of the commanders of Manouchehr-e Zyari and ruled over Damghan. This brick building is a type of tower-shaped tombs and has a circular plan and a cone-shaped dome, and its body has decorative motifs and inscriptions in the style of plastering and brickwork. The body of the tower consists of two different parts up to the starting point of the cornice. The lower part is about two-thirds of the height of the entire body and is covered with simple and woven brickworks, and the second part has five decorative strips and an inscription. This tomb tower has two inscriptions in Kufic script. One of the inscriptions is above the door head of its entrance, written in Knotted-Kufic script with plaster. The other one is seen all around the tower in the upper part of its body, which is in simple Kufic script in the style of brickwork. The content of the inscriptions includes the introduction of the builder of the monument and the year of its construction.
The purpose of the research is to investigate the visual features of the motifs and analyze the structure of the inscriptions of this monument. The research questions include: what are the visual features of the motifs of Chihil Dukhtaran tomb tower and, what structure do its Kufic inscriptions follow to achieve visual unity? The research methods are descriptive-analytical and field method, and the methods used to collect information are library and documentary research. The results indicate the decorative motifs of this monument are symbols of nature. The distinct feature of them is the independent identity of the design, which is in harmony with the form of building. After reconstruction of individual parts, harmonizing characteristics were revealed: the use of decorative elements in the writing system in a connected and dependent manner, that is one of the most important connecting factors. Observing uniformity in the form of writing and motifs makes the whole inscription uniform. And, one of the most important ways to achieve visual unity is the use of pseudo-writing inscriptions, which in this building, the most common type of such inscriptions has been used. This type of pseudo writing, which is not a special letter, serves reading the inscription and is used to achieve visual balance. In each of the two inscriptions, these types of pseudo writings have been used to create a connection and a coherent whole, and maintaining balance in the whole inscription depends on the presence of these elements.