Saddam Hussein and Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Tehran, 1975

April 1975, the meeting of Saddam Hussein of Iraq and Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Persia (Iran).

Saddam on that time was deputy chairman of Iraq Ba'athist Revolutionary Command Council and in 1980 became the president of Iraq. In the same year he attacked Iran.

The above photo was originally published in the Persian-language daily Etelaat in Tehran.

Amir-Abbas Hoveyda & Saddam Hussein, Baghdad Airport, 1975

A rare photo of Amir Abbas Hoveyda (prime minister of Persia) with Saddam Hussein (deputy chairman of Iraq Ba'athist Revolutionary Command Council).

Four years later, shortly after 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran, Hoveyda was executed in Tehran. In the same year Saddam Hussein became the president of Iraq and and in 1980 started an 8-year war with Persia.

 Publicly around 15 countries (including the United States, USSR, Britain, China, France, West Germany, Italy, Pakistan, Qatar, Yugoslavia, China, Pakistan, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia) supported Iraq during the war; while Iran was supported by Syria, Libya, North Korea and in some occasions Israel and US (The Iran-Contra Affair). China was selling weapons to both countries!

After US attack to Iraq, Saddam was also executed in 2006 in Baghdad.

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The above photo has been taken during the state visit of Hoveyda to Iraq in the mid-1970s. The main goal of Hoveyda's visit was negotiation with the then Iraqi President Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr to solve the problems between two countries.

 The photo has been originally published in the Persian-language daily Etelaat on 27 March 1975.

Elizabeth Taylor in Persia, May 1976

The Legendary Elizabeth Taylor at Tehran International Airport, May 1976.

She talks with Kayhan International's Maryam Kharazmi at planeside after arriving in IRAN AIR's first transcontinental jumbo jet flight.

Rare photo of Mahasti and friends in 1979

A rare photo of the late Persian singer Mahasti (R) with friends and colleagues in  a private gathering around 1979. The legendary songwriter Mohammad Heydari stands in the middle.

A frightened cat in Tehran

A handsome cat in Tehran who is afraid of strange visitors. No idea that he is 'Persian' or not, anyway he is so lovely and cute!
His name is Freddie and he lives in Yousef-Abad district of Teheran.

An attractive gallery of Persian carpets in Vienna

Photos of an attractive Persian carpets gallery in the Austrian capital, Vienna.

Louvre and Its Unique Persian Section

Louvre Museum in Paris hosts one of the greatest collections of Persian history in the world; unique objects from Persepolis, attractive bronzes from Lorestan province, sculptures from Susa, etc.
If you visit Paris do not miss the Louvre Museum and of course its Persian section.

Travel to Persia; Iran-Air Banner at Cologne Airport

TRAVEL TO PERSIA !
Iran Air banner at Cologne Airport which encourages Germans to visit Persia (or Iran) and become familiar with 7000 years history and culture of the country.

Muslims convert to Zoroastrianism in Holland

A group of Muslim Iranians (Persians) convert to their original religion Zoroastrianism.
The ceremony was take place in the city of Leiden, the Netherlands, 2011

A New and Unique Photo of Pasargard

A New and Unique Photo of Passargard, tomb of Cyrus the Great, King of Persia; an unfinished capital of Achemanid dynasty.
Photo by Hossein Amini, the Persian photographer who lives in Shiraz, exclusively for the blog Exiledpersian.Blogspot.com.

Pasargad now is one of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Cyrus the Great began building his capital in 546 BCE or later; it was unfinished when he died in battle, in 530 or 529 BCE. The remains of the tomb of Cyrus' son and successor, Cambyses II, has been found in Pasargad, near the fortress of Toll-e Takht, and identified in 2006.

Pasargad remained the Persian capital until Cambyses II moved it to Susa; later, Darius founded another in Persepolis. The archaeological site covers 1.6 square kilometres and includes a structure commonly believed to be the mausoleum of Cyrus, the fortress of Toll-e Takht sitting on top of a nearby hill, and the remains of two royal palaces and gardens. Pasargad Persian Garden provide the earliest known example of the Persian chahar bagh, or fourfold garden design.

Persian Carpet Gallery in Zürich, Switzerland, 2013

First Wife of Mohammad-Reza Shah, passed Away in Egypt

Today the Egyptian princess Fawzia passed away in Alexandria. She was 91. Fawzia was the first wife of Mohammad-Reza Pahlavi, the last king of Persia. They divorced in 1948. Here is an Australian newspaper image which published the divorce news on that time.

Swiss Blossoms in 2013