12th May 2021
Kings and Heroes, Lovers and Poets: the Shahnameh’s continuous appeal
Online webinar |
28th October 2020
Indians in Safavid Iran: the pictorial evidence
Online talk by Dr Sheila Canby |
23rd September 2020
The Persian Invasions of Greece Reconsidered
Online talk by Prof. Nicholas Sekunda |
4th March 2020
Dr Susan Roaf: The Amazing Windcatchers of Yazd
We take so much for granted when we look only at the visible structures of buildings, but windcatchers demonstrate that their invisible attributes may often be more important. |
27th February 2019
Prof. Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones: 'Locating the Women of Achaemenid Persia'
Women are notoriously difficult to find in the indigenous sources of Achaemenid Iran, but that is not to say that the iconography does not exist. Prof. Llewellyn-Jones highlights visual representations of women from across the Achaemenid empire and explores the diversity of female ‘types’ encountered in small-scale artworks like seal images, jewellery and textiles. He also considers how more recently Iranian artists, such as Hojat Shakiba, have projected an empowered image of Achaemenid women, which has contributed to a form of cultural myth-making about the freedom of women in the pre-Islamic past. |
23rd January 2019
Prof. Alan Williams: 'Rumi Manuscripts and the John Rylands Library'
rof. Williams talks about the priceless collection of Persian manuscripts held in the John Rylands Library of the University of Manchester, and highlights issues such as conservation and research. He stresses how if nothing is done urgently, many of these manuscripts will remain in obscurity and, even worse, actually perish over time. |
3rd October 2018
Rémy Boucharlat: 'Pasargadae, the capital of Cyrus the Great'
Dr Boucharlat looks at the site of Pasargadae, which Cyrus the Great chose as his capital at the beginning of his reign, and the results of some of the excavations that have taken place there. |
12th September 2018
Soosan Lolavar: 'Contemporary Composition in Iran'Talk by Soosan Lolavar
Soosan Lolavar is a British-Iranian composer and ethnomusicologist. In this talk she looks at a new movement in contemporary classical composition in Iran which combines elements of Iranian classical, religious, and folk music, with instruments, structures, and ideas from Western classical music. She also discusses at the questions of authenticity and ‘Iranian-ness’, exploring the global, regional, and diaspora Iranian identities as they are expressed through a new musical movement with trans-culturalism at its core. |
14th February 2018
Architecture in medieval Persian painting: fact or fantasy
Lecture by Prof. Robert Hillenbrand How did Persian painters tackle both the depiction of architecture and the actual process of construction? |
17th January 2018
Behind Closed Curtains: Interior Design in Iran
Presentation by Lena Späth Author Lena Späth has captured the beauty, intricacy, and vibrancy of Iranian interior design in order to showcase its underrated style in her new book Behind Closed Curtains: Interior Design in Iran. |
18th November 2017
Urban Planning and Civic Design in Modern Iran
Conference The main purpose and focus of the conference was on the evolution of urban planning and civic design in Iran from traditional to modern, with discussions and critical evaluations of the shortcomings, failures and successes of the process. Two major civic design projects of the period will also be presented and discussed: the ‘Shahestān Pahlavi’, and ‘Urban Renewal of Mashhad City Centre’. |
4th October 2017
Tombs of Achaemenid Kings and Queens: the Persian funerary cult and its Elamite background
Lecture by Dr Wouter Henkelman The complex relationship between the Elamites and the Persians has long been a subject for discussion. New light on this intriguing question is cast by information contained in cuneiform tablets in the Persepolis Fortification Archive, some of them still unpublished. |
14th June 2017
Portents, Presages and Predictions: Art and Divination in Pre-Modern Iran
Lecture by Dr Francesca Leoni In his 1574 account of a visit to Safavid Iran, the Venetian ambassador Vincenzo degli Alessandri made poignant remarks about Shah Tahmasp I’s lack of interest in statecraft. |
31st March 2017
Tappeh Sialk: The Glory of Ancient Kashan
Tappeh Sialk, on the outskirts of modern Kashan, is arguably the most important archaeological site in Iran before the Achaemenid period, with occupation dating back over 8000 years to 6000 BC |
12th November 2016
Iranian Architects and Architecture
The main focus of this conference was to look at the evolution of 20th century architecture in Iran, concentrating on the transition from traditional to postmodern architecture. |
23rd March 2016
The Achaemenid Persian Heritage: Greeks and Alexander
Achaemenid Persia of the 6th to 4th century BC was the greatest of the empires of the Old World, rivalling even that of Rome. It created a road system virtually from the Mediterranean to China, and its political organisation in satrapies was the most efficient of antiquity. |
16th December 2015
Destruction of Monuments and Memory in the Middle East
The recent destruction of cultural heritage in the Middle East has been on an unprecedented scale, without parallel in the history of the world. |
2nd December 2015
Yalda Event
Yalda is an Iranian festival celebrated at the time of the winter solstice, marking the turning point at which the days once again start to get longer, symbolizing the triumph of light over darkness. |
4th November, 2015
Digital Reconstruction of Historical Sites in Iran, from Susa to Isfahan
3-D reconstructions of the past are excellent tools for informing and educating the public, but one of the primary challenges facing historical reconstruction is how to recreate the past and demonstrate the results, when the surviving remains are so fragmentary. |
7th October 2015
The Caspian Horse: 50th anniversary of its rediscovery
2015 is the 50th anniversary of the rediscovery of the Caspian horse. To celebrate this, TV director and Caspian Horse Society council member, Farokh Khorooshi has teamed up with renowned equine photographer Colin Barker to produce a commemorative calendar depicting Caspians throughout the world, including their native Iran. |
2nd September 2015
Sa‘di’s Bustan for Shah Jahan: The Case of a Manuscript by Hakim Rukna
Dr Baburi highlights one of the British Library’s finest manuscripts, a Bustan transcribed in bold nasta‘liq calligraphy by Hakim Rukna. The manuscript was either commissioned by or presented as a gift to Emperor Shah Jahan I (r. 1628-1658) alongside a copy of the Gulistan copied earlier by the same calligrapher. |
1st July 2015
Remembering Iran: Zoroastrian Themes in Persian and Gujarati Texts
Lecture by Dr Sarah Stewart. This talk discussed the development of Parsi identity on Indian soil, which was both shaped and challenged by feelings of allegiance to the old country mixed with a desire to put down roots in the new. It will draw on texts – religious, epic and poetic - that represent different literary traditions and reflect the shifting relations between Parsis in India and their co-religionists in Iran. |
14th June 2015
Iran’s Medical Heritage: Symposium on a Millennium of Contributions
A one-day symposium looking at the contribution of Iranians in the field of medicine from the 9th to the 21st century. |
28th May 2015
Iran’s Diverse Musical Traditions
Lecture by Dr Ameneh Youssefzadeh. A one-day symposium looking at the contribution of Iranians in the field of medicine from the 9th to the 21st century. |
6th May 2015
Retracing a Utopian Stage: Festival of Arts (1967 - 77)
Vali Mahlouji talked about the exhibition he has curated for the Whitechapel Gallery entitled A Utopian Stage: Festival of Arts, Shiraz-Persepolis on display from 21 April to 6 October 2015. |
1st April 2015
Gardens of Medieval Persia: From Patronage to Evolution
Persian gardens are often cited in contemporary literature as places for pleasure and joy, although in reality, they functioned as dynamic parts of cities and empires. |
4th March 2015
Master Builders in Qajar Tehran: The Mirza Akbar Drawings
Lecture by Dr Moya Carey. The Victoria and Albert Museum possesses one of the world’s greatest collections of Iranian art, most of which was acquired by purchase. |
16th - 18th January 2015
From Persepolis to Isfahan: Safeguarding Cultural Heritage
This conference focussed on protecting the cultural heritage of Iran. As is well known cultural heritage worldwide is under threat, and from many countries there are stories of damage to monuments and archaeological sites allied to ongoing deterioration of cultural resources. |
14ty January 2015
Cyrus the Great: Between History and Legend
The life of Cyrus the Great has been the subject great interest from antiquity to the present. Reza Zarghamee discussed the aims and methods of his recently published book Discovering Cyrus. |
3rd December 2014
Food For Thought
Chaired by Dr Sussan Babaie of the Courtauld Institute, a panel of culinary experts discusses Persian food, their relationship with it, its characteristics, and its representation today. Our panellists reflect the growing popularity of Persian cuisine in the UK and worldwide, offering a more modern approach to traditional methods. |
5th November 2014
The Cosmogonies of oil traffic and visual culture in modern Iran
Morad Montazami will observe how some cardinal figures can reveal the “oil superego” which dominates unconsciously the Iranian modern visual culture. |
19th February 2013
The Cyrus Cylinder Tour of the USA
The Cyrus Cylinder, one of the most iconic treasures of the British Museum, often referred to as "the first charter of human rights", will travel to the United States for the first time, touring five major metropolitan centres. |
13th January 2013
Persian Manuscript Digitisation Project at the British Library
The Iran Heritage Foundation is fundraising for this important project, which will catalogue and digitise some of the many Persian manuscripts in the British Library's collection, making these freely accessible to scholars and enthusiasts worldwide via the Internet. |
25th March 2011
Celebrating the Spring Equinox: Introduction to Norouz.
As part of IHF's initiative to digitise as much material as possible and to reach the widest possible audience around the world, IHF is offering its second Podcast, providing a recording of the 25th March 2011 study day lectures by Dr Moya Carey and Dr. Hossein Elahi-Ghomshei at the Victoria and Albert Museum, on the subject of "Norouz." |
25th March 2011
Hossein Elahi-Ghomshei - The Mythology of Norouz in Persian Literature.
As part of IHF's initiative to digitise as much material as possible and to reach the widest possible audience around the world, IHF is offering its second Podcast, providing a recording of the 25th March 2011 study day lectures by Dr Moya Carey and Dr. Hossein Elahi-Ghomshei at the Victoria and Albert Museum, on the subject of "Norouz." |
March 2011
Making Connections
This 8-minute film showcases some of IHF's programmes on Persian language, including the 2010 Shahnameh exhibition at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge and IHF's Institutional Partnership Programme, which supports Persian studies teaching and curatorial posts at universities and museums. |
March 2011
Iran Heritage Foundation: A Journey Through Time
This 5-minute slideshow shows a range of images from recent programmes & events sponsored and/or supported by IHF. |
December 2010
The Shahnameh is one of the great monuments of World literature, written by Ferdowsi around 1000 AD and of central importance in the cultural sphere of Greater Persia. In preserving the memory and the spirit of a heroic past, it has continued to inspire his countrymen in all areas of life and art, influencing, amongst others, generations of poets.
In his lecture, Dick Davis will talk about the importance of the Shahnameh in the subsequent development of Persian poetry. In many ways the uniqueness of the Shahnameh sets it apart from Persian poetry in general, but Dick Davis' talk will explore how themes and techniques of the poem became central concerns for many of the major Persian poets who followed Ferdowsi, even when, as for example with many Sufi poets, their works show few obvious resemblances to Ferdowsi's great masterpiece." |
September 2010
Golha Project
This 6-minute film introduces IHF's Golha Project. This project will create a free online database of the complete archive of all 1,616 Golha radio programmes produced between 1956 and 1979 in Iran for students, researchers and enthusiasts everywhere. |
March 2010
Iran Heritage Foundation Celebrates 15 Years
This 11-minute film showcases some of the diverse and significant programmes IHF has driven forward in the past 15 years |