Crafts are unique expressions and represent our culture, tradition and heritage of our country, they are actually a kind of art that transmit the feeling of their artist. Iranian handicrafts are the best souvenirs to bring a part of this memorable country back home with you and tie your memories of  Iran to them.

 

 

 

Iran has a global fame for its weaving. Their antiquity, persistence and variety of persian weavings are of exceptional. Carpet, persian rug and nomad rug like Kilim, Jajim and Gabbeh.

Iranian art is well known in the west for its carpets. In carpet weaving iran is considered to have no equal .Throughout the world a persian carpet is among the most  valuable treasures. Most provinces of Iran have their own carpet designs, motifs, materials and methods of weaving. Persian carpets are usually made of  wool, cotton and silk. Silk is used to make the most precious carpets. Traditional carpet weaving is really hard and it has an extremely time-consuming process,that's why this kind of carpet is so exquisite and expensive.

 

 

Khatam or Persian Marquetry

Khatamkari is a kind of wood work and a persian art of marquetry. Bone, metal specifically copper and piece of wood to creat decorative things. Its a great gift or souvenir for those you love and definitely for yourself.you could find the best quality one in shiraz, of which is orginated in this city.

 

Minakari or Enamelling

When we talk about enamel ling it reminds us of Isfahan.Mina is a kind of  glass like colored coat. It is the art of decorating, painting, ornamenting and coloring of piece of metal. Actually the metal is colored by a glass like colored coat  which is called mina in Persian language. Enameling mostly comes in plates and other decorative objects.

 

Ceramic and Pottery Art

Another masterpiece of persian artist are ceramics and pottery art. It has a very long history and Iran was once a center of handmade ceramic and pottery productions. Today these products are designed by human, birds and geometric patterns and other amazing paintings.

 

Mosaic art and Tile working

Tileworking is the integral part of Iranian architecture and art. You could find mosaic tiles any where, from ceiling of mosques and tombs to the walls of gardens, pavilions and palaces. Iranian tiles are also used as fantastic decorative subjects.

 

Ghalamzani or Engraving on metal

This metal working is the art of embossing metals (golden, silver, copper) to create detailed and marvelous designs. You will hear the sound of steady banging by craftsmen in traditional bazaars of Iran.it is an unique souvenirs for your friends and family.

 

Handmade cloth

The most costly and luxurious Persian hand-woven cloth is termeh.It is a silk fabric with threads of gold woven in. Yazd Province is the center of producing of termeh but you could buy beautiful termehs all around Iran.

 

Ghalamkari/Qalamkari

One of the amazing handicrafts of Esfahan is the traditional textile printing and painting on cotton cloth that is named ghalamkari. It is a sort of handmade block print art however wooden stamps are also applied into the cloth to create different patterns.

 

Firoozeh koobi or Turquoise inlaying

The art of hammering small pieces of turquoise stone on surface of copper, silver, bronze objects and even jewelery .

 

Giveh

Giveh are traditional footwear common in the mountainous areas of the Kermanshah Province. These espadrille-like handmade shoes consist of a leather sole (though rubber is also available) and a white woven cotton upper. Especially practical during the summer months due to their breathable fabric, Giveh have made a comeback in recent years thanks to local artists giving it a modern change to attract the younger generations. Upgrade your wardrobe with this question which will surely cuase to turn your head and ask people where they had got their soft , comfortable and cool shoes!

 

Persian miniature painting

Pictorial art in Iran is represented by Miniature, especially illustrations for manuscripts, and to a much lesser extend by wall paintings. Miniature is a form of small and delicate painting on paper and also it is painted with considerable charm on enamel and inlade. It contains philosophical and mysterious figurative patterns, different creatures like human and animals as well as nature and plants. From Islamic period  until now, it has been used as illumination and manuscripts of religious books like Quran as a kind of non-figurative decoration in borders and panels in miniature pages,The most prominent contemporary masters of Persian painting and miniatures is Mahmoud farshchian.

 

Persian Calligraphy

From an Iranian's aesthetic point of view, calligraphy conveys spiritual beauty by means of pure form, and was given great importance long  before the advent of Islam. However, only after Islamic conquest the Iranian calligrapher found the possibility of a great development of this art ready to his hand in the Arabic alphabet,so Iranian calligraphy has been undergoing an ongoing improvement.

This amazing art has been used as a design and decorative treatment by writing verses of Quran on glazed bricks and mosaics in the walls of mosques and stone panels. Calligraphy of Quranic verses , Persian poems on paper are the most prevalent use of this art. However, today, calligraphy is also used in dress designing industry by printing some Persian poetess and alphabets on them.

Calligraphy tools kit are :Qalam( a reed pen), an ink-pot and a pen-box.

 

Traditional Music Instruments

Generally speaking Iranian music divided into three categories:classical,western and folk. Actually Classical Persian music is known as Persian traditional music as well. Traditional imstruments are mostly String instruments and Percussion instruments.

Here are six famous Iranian traditional musical instruments :

Nay

A vertical reed flute with six finger holes in the front, and one in the back.

 

Tar

A fretted lute with six strings, five of steel and one of brass. It has long neck and double-bellied sound box.

 

 

Setar

A four-string, wooden lute with two strings made of steel and the other two of brass.Setar is strummed with the nail of the right index finger.

 

Kamanche/Kamancha/Kamancheh

Kamancha, or bowed lute is an Iranian bowed string instrument that is often elegantly inlaid or painted. It is held upright on its spike, it is bowed with the right hand in a palm-up position and a handgrip is used when playing fiddle.

 

 

Oud/Ud/Barbat

The arabian name for the ancient Persian instrument called the Barbat. It is a plucked string instrument with nine to eleven strings.

 

Santoor/Santur/Santour

A type of hammered dulcimer. It has the form of a shallow trapezoidal box, and is played with delicate wooden mallets. There are several sound posts inside the box.

 

Tombak

The principle percussion instrument in the iranian classical music. It is a vase-shaped drum open on the bottom and covered with a tightly-stretched sheepskin membrane across its larger, upper part.

 

Daf/Def

Another popular percussion instrument. It is one of the most ancient of the frame drums, popular all over Asia and North Africa, and  played with blood-tingling rhythms.In Iran It is more popular in Kurdistan.