Chehel Sotoun of Qazvin is famous for its fresco paintings, there is three periods of paintings witnessed in this place each covered by the next. The first layer of the painting is the early Safavid time, the time that Shah Tahmasp chose this place. since it is the first layer, not much is seen of it, and the theme of the painting can’t be known. The second layer belongs to the late Safavid time showing scenes of hunting and celebration. The last layer was painted when Qajars came to the throne and although the mood and the colors used here are different, the themes of the painting remained the same. The painters of the paintings in none of the periods are known.
The doors are all inlaid woodwork decorated with paintings, tiling, and gilding. The decorations faded with the time, just like the brick floor that was destroyed and replaced. The whole construct has a cross-like and extroverted plan. It is this extroverted plan that made archeologists call it a pavilion and not a palace. If it was a palace, then the architecture of the place should have been introverted. The current shape of the place proves that it opened to the private section and not a place that all could pass from. The place has been turned to a calligraphy museum in recent years displaying some of the most valuable works of the country.
