San Petersburg from the Perspective of Iranian Itineraries in 19th century Javad Abbasi Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran Iran and Russia had critical and challenging relations in 19th century, well known by war, occupation and interfere from Russian side. Meantime 19th century was the era of Iranian’s involvement in European modernism and their curiosity for exploring new world. Consequently many Iranians, as official agents or explorers, traveled to Europe and Russia, including San Petersburg. Writing their itineraries, these travelers left behind a wealthy literature about their observations and considerations. San Petersburg, as the capital city of Russian Empire and also as a desirable station for travelers, was one of the most important destination for these itinerary writers. The focus of present paper is on the descriptions of these travelers about the features of San Petersburg in a comparative perspective. To fulfill this purpose, itineraries from early, middle and late 19th century including Safarnamahs of Mirza Abul Hasan Khan Ilchi, Khosro Mirza, Zahir al-Dolah and Haj Sayyah will be examined.

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