nasty Hulagu. Shams al-Din founded a new dynasty and his successors, especially Fakhr-al-Din and Ghiyath al-Din, built many mosques and other buildings. The members of this dynasty were great patrons of literature and the arts. By this time Her?t became known as the pearl of Khorasan.
"If any one ask thee which is the pleasantest of cities, Thou mayest answer him aright that it is Her?t. For the world is like the sea, and the province of Khur?s?n like a pearl-oyster therein, The city of Her?t being as the pearl in the middle of the oyster."
Rumi, 1207-1273 A.D.
Timur took Herat in 1380 and he brought the Kartid dynasty to an end a few years later, but the city reached its greatest glory under the Timurid princes, especially Sultan Husayn Bayqara who ruled Herat from 1469 to 912/1506. His chief minister, the poet and author in Persian and Turkish, Mir Ali-Shir Nava'i was a great builder and patron of the arts. Under the Timurids, Herat assumed the role of the main capital of an empire that extended in the West as far as central Persia. As the capital of the Timurid empire, it boasted many fine religious buildings and was famous for its sumptuous court life and musical performance and its tradition of miniature paintings. On the whole, the period was one of relative stability, prosperity, and development of economy and cultural activities. It began with the nomination of Shahrokh, the youngest son of Timur, as governor of Herat in 1397. The reign of Shahrokh in Herat was marked by intense royal patronage, building activities, and promotion of manufacturing and trade, especially through the restoration and enlargement of the Herat�s b?z?r. The present Mosalla Complex, and many buildings such as the madrasa of Goharshad, Ali Shir mah?l, many gardens, and others, date from this time. The village of Gazargah, over two km northeast of Herat, contained a shrine which was enlarged and embellished under the Timurids. The tomb of the poet and
