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Ferdowsi Shahnameh

2020/02/11/1 Comment/in Other /by Iran Tourism

The Shahnameh, Book of Kings, is an epic composed by the Iranian poet Hakim Abul-Qasim Mansur and completed around 1010 CE. It is structured according to the mythical and historical reign of 50 Persian Kings. The epic chronicles the legends and histories of Iranian kings from primordial times to the Arab conquest of Iran in the 7th century CE, in three successive stages: the mythical, the heroic or legendary, and the historic. Ferdowsi began the composition of the Shahnameh’s approximately 100,000 lines as 50,000 couplets each consisting of two hemistichs 62 stories and 990 chapters, a work several times the length of Homer’s Iliad, in 977 CE, when eastern Iran was under Samanid rule. It took Ferdowsi thirty three years to complete his epic, by which time the rule of eastern Iran had passed to the Turkmen Ghaznavids. The Shahnameh was written in classical Persian when the language was emerging from its Middle Persian Pahlavi roots, and at a time when Arabic was the favored language of literature. As such, Ferdowsi is seen as a national Iranian hero who re-ignited pride in Iranian culture and literature, and who established the Persian language as a language of beauty and sophistication. Ferdowsi wrote: “the Persian language is revived by this work.”

The earliest and perhaps most reliable account of Ferdowsi’s life comes from Nezami Aruzi, a 12th-century poet who visited Tus in 1116 or 1117 to collect information about Ferdowsi’s life. According to Nezami Aruzi, Ferdowsi Tusi was born into a family of landowners near the village of Tus in the Khorasan province of north-eastern Iran. Ferdowsi and his family were called Dehqan which means landed, village settlers, urban and even farmer. A thousand years ago during Ferdowsi’s lifetime, books were written and reproduced by hand, making book production labor- intensive and expensive. Adding illustrations increased the expense. A simple basic manuscript copy could cost as much as a horse – often an entire stable and sometimes the farm. Books therefore were not written for public consumption. Ferdowsi sought the patronage of the then rulers of Iran. The famed amount that Ferdowsi expected to receive for his Shahnameh was a gold piece for every verse. It influenced not just Persian speakers but also the cultures of Turkic peoples in Central Asia, Azerbaijan, and the Ottoman Empire, as well as the Georgian, Kurdish, and Pashto literary traditions. The Shahnameh continues to be one of the main pillars of the modern Persian language.

Nowruz

2020/02/01/2 Comments/in Other /by Iran Tourism

Nowruz is the Persian, or Iranian, spring celebration of the New Year. It’s the most important festival of the year in Iran, and it’s a public holiday there and in Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Afghanistan, Albania and other countries in South and Central Asia. It begins at the exact day, hour and minute of the spring equinox, when night and day are of equal length. This is usually on 21 March. It’s the day when winter changes into spring, and it feels like a new beginning. People prepare for Nowruz by cleaning the whole house, and everyone in the family helps out. Carpets, windows and curtains are cleaned. Anything broken is repaired or replaced. Silverware is polished. The house is decorated with flowers. By doing this spring cleaning, people wash away the bad things from the previous year and prepare for better things to come in the New Year. They also put on brand new clothes to symbolize a fresh start. After thousands of years in the making, Nowruz remains too beloved, universal, and deeply embedded in Persian culture to ignore.

Persians celebrate around a special table in their house. It’s called the haft-seen, which means “seven Ss”. On it, there are seven special objects, all of which begin with letter “s” sound in the Farsi language and which symbolize something. There are actually more than seven, but here are some of the most common.

Sabzeh: Some kind of sprout or grass that will continue to grow in the weeks leading up to the holiday, for rebirth and renewal

Senjed: Dried fruit, ideally a sweet fruit from a lotus tree, for love

Sib: Apples, for beauty and health

Seer: Garlic, for medicine and taking care of oneself

Samanu: A sweet pudding, for wealth and fertility

Serkeh: Vinegar, for the patience and wisdom that comes with aging

Sumac: A Persian spice made from crushed sour red berries, for the sunrise of a new day.

While these seven S items are the foundation of a haft-seen, the tradition has evolved to the point where there are several other things you can include. For example, It can be included a mirror symbolizing reflection, colored eggs for fertility, coins for prosperity, and, if we were feeling ambitious, a live goldfish for new life.

Persian Cat

2020/01/18/232 Comments/in Other /by Iran Tourism

Persian World states that although the history of where this cat originated may be sketchy, breeding programs for Persians began in Italy and France as far back as the 16th Century. The breeding program advanced further and the development of the Persian as known today began in Great Britain. Persians were entered in the first cat shows in Great Britain in the 1800s, and they were a popular pet at the time. By the early 1900s, Americans began to import Persians into the United States. The Persian is usually a medium sized cat, although she is massive and heavily boned. With her masses of fur, she can appear larger than she really is. While there is no particular weight range the Persian should fall in, these cats should be full bodied and balanced. The Persian is an extreme-looking breed. The body is short, but thick with thick legs and a short, thick neck. The tail is short and the ears are small. The head is round with large, round eyes. When viewed in profile her face is flat and the nose changes direction so that what is seen is mostly the colored flesh on her nose.

The coat on a Persian is thick, full and long. It is fine, but should be lustrous and glossy. The ideal Persian coat has a fine texture and is long, thick and glossy. Variety is truly the spice of life when it comes to coat colors. This breed is divided into no less than seven separate coat color groups, with plenty of choices in each. You can find Persian cats in just about every solid color including black, blue, chocolate, red, lilac, cream and white. Most solid colors are accompanied by copper eyes, except for white Persians that either have copper, blue, or odd-eyes.

A Persian’s head is easily its most distinctive feature. It’s larger and generally rounder than that of the average cat, with large, round, wide-set eyes and a sweet expression. The ears are fairly small with rounded tips, and they should be set wide apart and tilted slightly forward. The cheeks are also quite round, and the short nose appears to be aligned with the eyes. Some Persian cats have the traditional “doll face” whereas others have a flatter face that is sometimes called “Peke face” because it’s like a Pekingese dog. The flat face Persians tend to be more popular at cat shows but also tend to have more health problems than doll face Persians.

Mashhad

2020/01/09/1 Comment/in Mashhad, Other, Razavi Khorasan /by Iran Tourism

Mashhad is Iran’s holiest and second-largest city. The city is laid out in a roughly circular shape, with the religious edifices and monuments located in the centre and avenues radiating outward to approximately 12 neighborhoods, such as Malekabad, Sajjad, Shahrak-e Azadi, Kuy-e Imam Reza, and Sisabad. Not just a religious city, Mashhad is called the holy city of Iran because it is home to the tomb and shrine of Islam’s eighth Shia Imam, Imam Reza. Every year millions of pilgrims from around the world flock to this shrine, giving it a palpably spiritual and multinational feel. As one of the most magnificent religious places in Iran, Astan Qods Razavi is the symbol of Mashahd where the Islamic art and religion are linked to each other. Located along the Silk Road, it is the economic capital and the intercontinental commercial center in the Central Asia. Mashhad economic activities are dependent on the services, industry and agriculture; however, it is focused on a services-based economy due to the presence of the passengers and pilgrims who travel to there. About 40 percent of Mashhad industry is relied on the food, metal and handicraft industry. Tourism based on pilgrimages to the shrine of Imam Reza is a key part of Mashhad’s economy.

Most of Mashhad people are of Iranian Aryan race, although many Kurds, Turks and Arabs live there. Mashhad is a multiethnic city that includes Persians, Baluchis, Daris, Hazrajatis, Turkmen, Uzbeks, Tajiks, Kurds, and Lurs among its residents. Residents speak in Persian Language, Mashhadi accent and they are the followers of Ja’fari Shiite. Mashhad is the site of a prominent institution of higher education, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, which has colleges of humanities, mathematics, natural sciences, theology, education, and veterinary medicine.

Mashhad is a good place to buy carpets with its own special carpet plans. Mashhad is also known for gemstones. The area with 39 known different varieties of gemstone is rich enough to export gemstones to many other countries. It has about 90 percent of gemstone workshops of the country which produce jewelry in addition to religious accessories such as rosaries and rings. Also the most expensive spice in the world which is Saffron is produced greatly in Mashhad.

Pasargadae

2020/01/07/9 Comments/in Fars, Other, Shiraz /by Iran Tourism

Pasargadae is the first dynastic capital of the Persian Achaemenian dynasty, situated on a plain northeast of Persepolis in southwestern Iran. Pasargadae was built by the first great Persian king, Cyrus the Great, as his palace and showpiece. Cyrus deserves his special place in the history of modern Persia. He began as a ruler of a petty kingdom in the southwestern corner of the habitable part of modern Iran. It was a totally new concept of a garden city that established many of the principles of what became Persian architecture. Pasargadae has in fact one really superb piece of architecture: it is the tomb of Cyrus, situated right on the edge of the main palace complex. The tomb of Cyrus still stands almost intact, its simple lines and massive strength a perfect foil for its upland location. Constructed of huge white limestone blocks, its gabled tomb chamber rests on a rectangular stepped plinth, with six receding stages.

Pasargadae stands as an exceptional witness to the Achaemenid civilization. The vast Achaemenid Empire, which extended from the eastern Mediterranean and Egypt to the Hindus River in India, is considered the first empire to be characterized by a respect for the cultural diversity of its peoples. This respect was reflected in the royal Achaemenid architecture, which became a synthesized representation of the empire’s different cultures. Pasargadae represents the first phase of this development into a specifically Persian architecture which later found its full expression in the city of Persepolis. Within the boundaries of the archaeological site of Pasargadae are located the known elements and components necessary to express the Outstanding Universal Value of the property, including the tomb of Cyrus the Great, the remains of the Tall-e Takht fortified platform, and the remains of the royal ensemble within the Four Gardens. The ancient capital extended much beyond the inscribed property, but has not yet been excavated.

It is best to imagine Pasargadae as a group of garden pavilions in a park: essentially a camp of nomads, but made out of natural stone. Stylistically, the Audience Hall, Residential Palace, the garden pavilions A and B, and the Gate belonged to the architectural tradition of the Iranian nomads, who lived in large tents. However, Cyrus used elements from other cultures as well: sculptures from the Assyrian palaces were used as models, work may have been done by stonemasons from Greek Ionia, and a hybrid demon guarded the gate.

Tabriz

2020/01/02/1 Comment/in East Azerbaijan, Other, Tabriz /by Iran Tourism

Tabriz is one of the oldest and biggest cities of Iran on the hillside of the Sahand Mountain which is surrounded by mountains in the north, south and east and flat lands as well as the Talkherud salt marsh in the west, like a partly big hollow or a plain with fantastic view among the mountains, at the height of 1350 to 1550 m above the sea level in different areas. Having some of most famous museums, holding some of the cultural events, and harboring a couple of the most prestigious Iranian universities, the city is considered a major hub for science and culture in Iran. Tabriz was named by the Organization of Islamic Conference as the city of the Islamic world tourism. Tabriz was the residence of the crown prince under the Qajar kings. Tabriz has a high political and economic position and best-known as the “Cradle of Investment” due to the ability to attract large investments from private sectors. It is ranked 1 in attracting investment among Iran cities for five consecutive years.

The main industrial productions of this area are foodstuffs, chemicals, non-metallic mineral, basic metals, textiles and carpet machinery. In addition, Tabriz has been a heavy industrial center including machinery and equipment industries. It is a leading center for Leather production, in addition to being famous for the other arts and handicrafts, for a long time. Tabriz and Maragheh handmade carpets are famous in all around the world due to their specific design and high quality that their export is considered as one of the significant sources of foreign exchanges in Iran. Today, Tabriz people speak in Turkish language and this city was the capital of Shia in all around the world and most of its residents are followers of Asna Ashari Shia.

With a very rich history, Tabriz used to house many historical monuments. Unfortunately, many of them were destroyed in repeated invasions and attacks of foreign forces, negligence of the ruling governments, and natural disasters such as earthquakes and floods. What remains now mostly dates back to the Ilkhanids, the Safavids, and the Qajars. Some of the monuments are unrivaled masterpieces of architecture. The most famous monuments of Tabriz are buildings like the Blue Mosque, El Goli Garden, Shahrdari Square, Sa’at Tower and so on.

Chogan

2019/12/21/0 Comments/in Fars, Isfahan, Isfahan, Other, Shiraz /by Iran Tourism

Chogan has been popular among the kings and Iranian grandee in the past and its name as an aristocratic sport is derived from that. Chogan, known also as polo, is a sporting team game with horses and a version of the modern polo game. It was inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2017. For the first time, Chogan was played during Achaemenians in Iran. As Achaemenians extended their borders to far and vast geographical spots, this ancient Iranian game found its way to other countries too. Chogan as one of the amusing activities between kings, rulers and wealthy people.

Kar Namag Ardashir Pabakan, is a middle Persian prose tale written in Sassanid Era. It narrates the story of Ardeshir I, the founder of this dynasty. It’s the first written document that mentions Chogan as an Iranian game. The theme of Chogan has been used widely in different areas of art and literature. For example, it’s been mentioned in the poems of Ferdowsi, Rudaki, Nezami, Sa’di, Hafez, and other great Persian poets. It has been also the theme in many valuable Persian miniatures and the designs on the potteries.

Chogan was played differently back then. Horse riding was more of a military and warfare practice. Therefore, this entertainment included horses’ military style marching and riding war horses. As the time went by, Chogan changed to the present day style. Polo firstly just had a recreational function in order to show the Iranian military horses talent. Chogan is a strategic game that requires physical readiness and skill for both riders and horses, just like a miniature battle. In the past, it was a play where the Persian riders exhibited their skills in riding, fighting, and playing as well as the fighting skills, speed, and agility of their horses. The horses of Chogan are called polo ponies. Since horse riding was a military practice in the past, Persians believed the horse that can do well in Chogan, can do well in the war too.

Today, in Chogan, ponies are full sized horses used for this traditional Iranian game. In Persian, they are referred to simply as Chogan horses. They should be equipped with safety gears to be ready for the races. They are supposed to have special leg wraps to be protected against the mallets. The line attached to the curb bit must be adjusted in a comfortable and free, so that ponies can be easily levered.

Yazd

2019/12/10/0 Comments/in Other, Yazd, Yazd /by Iran Tourism

Yazd is a desert city in central Iran and the capital of the Yazd province. It is an ancient city dating back to the Sassanid period. It is nicknamed “the City of Wind catchers” in Persian, and in 2017 it was listed by UNESCO as a world heritage. The climate is completely desertic. A network of qanats (tunnels dug to carry water) links Yazd with the edge of the nearby mountain Shir Kuh. Each district of the city is built on a qanat and has a communal center. Some of the city’s inhabitants are Zoroastrians whose ancestors had fled toward Yazd and Kerman when the Muslim Arabs conquered Iran. Yazd is now the last center of Zoroastrianism in Iran. The economy of the area in which Yazd is situated is dominated by agriculture that was modernized through the establishment of farm corporations and processing centers for agricultural products. The chief crops grown include wheat, barley, cotton, oilseeds, indigo plants, fruits, and vegetables.

Yazd is an outstanding example of a traditional human settlement which is representative of the interaction of man and nature in a desert environment that results from the optimal use and clever management of the limited resources that are available in such an arid setting by the qanat system and the use of earth in constructing buildings with sunken courtyards and underground spaces. Besides creating pleasant micro-climate, it uses minimum amounts of materials, which provides inspiration for new architecture facing the sustainability challenges today.

Yazd possesses a large number of excellent examples of traditional desert architecture with a range of houses from modest ones to very large and highly decorated properties. In addition to the main mosque and bazaar which are in a very good state, each district of the historic city still has all its specific features such as water cisterns, hammams, mosques, mausoleums, etc. In the city, there are still many streets and alleys which have kept their original pattern, having also many sabats.

The most important historical monuments of Yazd are Masjid-e Jame, Yazd Water Museum, Takyeh Amir Chakhmagh, Cistern of Fatemeh-e-Golshan, Amir Chakhmagh Mosque, Market Square Clock, Fire temple, Dakhmeh or Zoroastrian Towers of Silence, Dowlat Abad Garden, Museum of Zoroastrians History and Culture, and etc. which attracts numerous visitors.

Kerman

2019/12/05/52 Comments/in Kerman, Kerman, Other /by Iran Tourism

Kerman is the capital city of Kerman, the biggest province of Iran. Kerman is one of the five historical cities of Iran. From the industrial, political, cultural and scientific points of view, it is the most important city in the southeast of Iran. The city lies on a sandy plain, 1755 meters above sea level, under barren rocky hills. Surrounded by mountains on the north and east, it has a cool climate and frequent sandstorms in the autumn and spring. Kerman is very famous for its long history and strong cultural heritage. Due to the special geographical conditions Kerman province enjoys considerable changeable climate. The population is mostly Persian-speaking Muslims, with a Zoroastrian minority.

Kerman city was probably founded by Ardashir I of the Sasanid dynasty and was called Behdesir. Under the Safavid, it came to be known as Kerman and was made capital of a province. Kerman city with a height of 1755 meters is located on a high margin of Lut Desert in the central south of Iran, is the Capital of Kerman Providence. Kerman is counted as one of the oldest cities.

The Sar-ta-sari Mall of Kerman is large and there are some old mosques including Masjed-e Malek, Masjed-e Jomeh, Masjed-e Bazar-e Shaah, and Masjed-e Pa Minar. At the western end of the bazaar is the Arg, the former citadel of the Qajar dynasty. Next to it is the Qaleh, allegedly constructed as a citadel by the Afghans during a short-lived subjugation of Kerman. On the Kerman plain stands the Jabel-e Sang and to the west is the Bagh-e Sirif, a luxuriant garden.

The great potentials in Kerman province, regarding such resources as industry, mining, agriculture, and service-sector, have all created favorable conditions to establish postgraduate education and research centers for further development of the area. Graduate University of Advanced Technology (GUAT) was thus founded in 2007 with the aim to partly fill this gap. With an area of 2000 hectares, the GUAT is located in Mahan, 28km southeast of Kerman. Currently, there are three faculties providing educational and research services in 39 MSc and 15 PhD programs, together with the facilities prepared in the same campus for commercializing the knowledge-based achievements of the GUAT post-graduate students and researchers.

Kerman is the largest carpet exporting center of Iran. The city formerly owed its industrial reputation to its shawl making, but that industry was surpassed by carpet making and is a major exporter of pistachio nuts.

Top 10 tourist attractions of Shiraz

2019/12/02/0 Comments/in Fars, Other, Shiraz /by Iran Tourism

Shiraz is one of the most significant city at the center of Fars province at the height of 1486 m above sea level, located in the Zagros mountainous area. Shiraz is known as the city of Poets literature wine and flowers. It is also considered by many Iranians to be the city of gardens due to the many gardens and fruit trees. Here are the most popular attractions of Shiraz.

1- Perspolis

This magnificent court was the summer residence of the Achaemenid emperors and their official reception quarters. Although Alexander set on fire and destroyed it, in a gesture symbolizing the destruction of Persian imperial power, its impressive ruins permit a fairly complete reconstruction of its original appearance.

2- Pasargadae

Pasargadae was the first dynastic capital of the Achaemenid Empire, founded by Cyrus II the Great, in Pars, homeland of the Persians. Its palaces, gardens and the mausoleum of Cyrus are outstanding examples of the first phase of royal Achaemenid art and architecture and exceptional testimonies of Persian civilization.

3-Eram Garden

Eram Garden, located along the northern shore of the Khoshk River in Shiraz, is one of the most famous and beautiful Persian gardens in all of Iran.

4- Tomb of Hafez

The tombstone of Hafez lies in a beautiful garden which is another sample of Persian gardens. The architecture of this monument is amazing. The mausoleum has 8 pillars which signify the century when he lived.

5- Tomb of Sa’di

The building was constructed by the Association for National Arts and the tomb of Sa’di was placed in an octagonal mausoleum with high dome and interesting tile works.

6- Vakil Bazaar

Vakil Bazaar in Shiraz is the main section of the Shiraz Bazaar which was built by Karim Khan as part of a plan to make Shiraz into a prominent trading center.

7- Mausoleum of Shah Cheragh

Shah-e Cheragh Shrine is a funerary monument and mosque in Shiraz, Iran, housing the tomb of the brothers Ahmad and Muhammad, sons of Musa al-Kadhim and brothers of Ali ar-Ridha.

8- Ghalat Village

The village is a mixture of gardens and some houses which are mostly built with roughly shaped stones plus mortar. The village enjoys in its vicinity an eye-catching waterfall.

9- Arjan Plain

Arjan magnificent plain is located 60 kilometers from Shiraz and 20 kilometers from Kazeroun city.

10- Margoon Waterfall

The height of this waterfall is 70 meters and its width is 100 meters. This waterfall is in fact the source of a river and there are no rivers at the top of the mountain but there are several thousand springs on the mountain body from which water come out.