A considerable amount of literature has been
published on the meaning and symbolism of Asian
and Persian gardens (Alemi 1390; Ansari et al. 2008;
Borazjani & Javadi 2004; Shahidi et al. 2010). There
is also some research on the occurrence of gardens
within Persian literature, carpets, miniature and
other sorts of art. However, there has been relatively
little published on the application of meanings
and symbolism in the design and architectural
discourse of the garden. Therefore, this paper seeks
to investigate how the layers of meaning in Persian
gardens have penetrated to different elements and
aspects of garden design. In this regard, three wellknown
gardens have been selected amongst Persian
gardens around the country: (1) Shahzadeh-Mahan
Garden, (2) Fin Garden, and (3) Chehel Sotun Garden.
All of these gardens are located in semi-desert and
desert lowland zones near to the vast deserts of
Iran: Dasht-e Kavir and Dasht-e Lut (Fig. 1).