Once the most luxuriously decorated palace in Esfahan, the interior of the small Hasht Behesht Palace has been extensively damaged over the years, but it retains some spectacular details, including a superb stalactite ceiling with delicate painting. The same keyhole plasterwork seen in the Kakh-e Ali Qapu is featured on a small scale here too. The soaring wooden columns on the palace's open-sided terrace are almost as tall as those still growing in the parkland that frames it. A popular meeting place for retired Esfahani men, the park has a seductive tranquillity that offers the promise of peace in a city of pace.