Pearl Palace

Pearl Palace, belonging to Shams Pahlavi, the sister of Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi, stands as a symbol of financial corruption with an estimated value of 1.4 trillion tomans. It is located in a specific part of Karaj, and its restoration requires a budget of 270 billion tomans. Pearl Palace, also known as Shams Palace, was requested by Khadijeh Pahlavi (Shams ol-Molouk), the second daughter of Reza Shah Pahlavi and wife of Mehrdad Pahlbod. It was built between 1966 and 1968 on a 111-hectare land with an area of about 2,500 square meters. The palace was designed and constructed by the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, with an execution contract of one million dollars.

Shams Pahlavi, due to her asthma and the conversion of her and her children’s religion from Islam to Christianity, was generally a reclusive person. She was the only member of the Pahlavi family who did not interfere in the country’s domestic and foreign political affairs. Therefore, she chose Mehrshahr in Karaj for her residence in a healthy environment and ordered the construction of Pearl Palace. The designers were inspired by Shams Pahlavi’s fondness for pearl jewelry, and they designed the palace in the shape of a stingray holding a pearl, with rooms and skylights shaped like pearls.

Ownership of this palace was eventually transferred to its main custodian, the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, and restoration and renovation work has begun. It is hoped that it will soon reopen to the public for visits.