A journey through central Iran - in pictures

A family rides a motorcycle past the Amir Chakhmaq Hosseinieh worship site, one of the largest such structures in Iran, in the desert town of Yazd Photograph: John Moore/Getty Images

A shepherd herds goats at sunset near the village of Nasrabad Photograph: John Moore/Getty Images

People ride a horse and carriage in Isfahan's Unesco-listed central square. With its immense mosques, picturesque bridges and ancient bazaar, Isfahan is a virtual living museum of traditional culture, making it Iran's top tourist destination Photograph: John Moore/Getty Images

Portraits of the late Ayatollah Khomeini (L) and Iran's current supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei hang over shoppers in the historic Bazar-e Bozorg in Isfahan Photograph: John Moore/Getty Images

Women pass a fried chicken fast-food restaurant in Isfahan Photograph: John Moore/Getty Images

Ancient tombs stand hewn into a cliff in Naqsh-e-Rostam. The ruins mark the burial sites of three kings from the 6th century BC Persian Achaemenid empire, the largest empire the world had known up to that time, which was eventually ended by Alexander the Great Photograph: John Moore/Getty Images

A donkey stand outside traditional mud brick homes in the ancient mountain village of Abyaneh Photograph: John Moore/Getty Images

Women dressed in traditional hijab walk past a portrait of the late Ayatollah Khomeini in Qom Photograph: John Moore/Getty Images

A woman fills her car's tank at a service station in Shahinshahr. Petrol prices, which are regulated by the government, have risen sharply in the last month Photograph: John Moore/Getty Images

A couple talk in the food court of the new Isfahan City Centre shopping mall. Still under construction, it is the largest shopping centre in Iran and will include a 5-star hotel, a financial centre and an entertainment centre with cinema and fair complex. The mall is being built by Prestige Land Iran and was designed by architect Madardo Cadiz of Cadiz International Photograph: John Moore/Getty Images

A couple relax in Naqsh-e Jahan Square in Isfahan Photograph: John Moore/Getty Images

A family at dusk in Naqsh-e Jahan Square, Isfahan Photograph: John Moore/Getty Images

Thousands of people gather at the shrine to Ayatollah Khomeini in Tehran on the 25th anniversary of his death. Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic, is still revered by conservative Iranians, and his portrait hangs throughout the country Photograph: John Moore/Getty Images

A boy shows off his T-shirt bearing the face of Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, outside the shrine to Ayatollah Khomeini Photograph: John Moore/Getty Images