Dār ul-Funun is the oldest Western-style institute of higher education in Iran, established by the royal vizier to Nasereddin Shah in 1851.
Eastern gate of Dār ul-Funun in the Nāser Khosrow Street. The motto is inscribed on the upper part of the front face.
Entrance of Dar ul-Funun
Naser al-Din Shah Qajar was the fourth Shah of Qajar Iran from 5 September 1848 to 1 May 1896 when he was assassinated. He was the son of Mohammad Shah Qajar and Malek Jahan Khanom and the third longest reigning monarch in Iranian history after Shapur II of the Sassanid dynasty and Tahmasp I of the Safavid dynasty. Nasser al-Din Shah had sovereign power for close to 51 years.
Naser al-Din Shah, photographed by Nadar in 1889
Naser al-Din Shah by Abul Hasan Ghaffari, 1859
Naser al-Din Shah Qajar, King of Persia. Photography by Nadar in 1881
The Shah on his European tour, seated with British and Russian royalty in the Royal Albert Hall, London