Although no one is quite sure when construction of the gardens began, historical evidence suggests that the gardens were built during the Seljuk Dynasty (11th-14th centuries) under the rule of one of its most celebrated monarchs, Ahmad Sanjar. Like many other attractions in Shiraz, the Eram Gardens have been restored and repaired by the Zand kings of the Zand Dynasty (1750-1794), but during the later period of the Zand Dynasty, the garden changed hands to a Qashgai tribal chief, Mohammad Qoli Khan.