Persian Postage Stamps from ca. 1850 (Qajar Era)

Today I found these Persian postage stamps in a market in Berlin. They belong to Qajar dynasty which was in power in Persia (Iran) in 18th and 19th century.

I am not 100% sure but strongly believe the king which has been painted on the stamp is NASER AL-DIN SHAH (or Nassereddin Shah) who was the king of Persia since 1831 to 1896.

On the stamp "POSTES PERSANES" is mentioned which is French for "Persian Post". It shows on that time French was a kind of International language, instead of English.
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ALSO WATCH: Qajar-era Persian Art Exhibition in Australia:

Perse | Persa | Perzië Perzische Postzegels | Briefmake aus Persien (Iran)
伊朗 - 波斯 - 邮票 | בול דואר - איראן - ממלכת פרס
Irán - Persa - Sello postal - Iraní ایرانی - طابع بريد بلاد فارس/ إيران Pul (posta) - İran - Pers İmparatorluğu
イラン - ペルシア - 切手
تمبرهای ایران از زمان ناصرالدین شاه قاجار

Reza Daneshvar Passes Away in Exile

Reza Daneshvar, the celebrated Persian writer, passed away in Paris on Wednesday, 27 May 2015 due to cancer. He was 68.

Reza Daneshvar used to live in France after 1979 Islamic revolution in his homeland. He is the author of various famous Persian screen plays and novels such as "Khosro-e Khooban" [King of the Blessed] and "Namaz-e Meyyet" [Funeral Ritual].

The literary critic Behrouz Sheyda, in an interview with BBC Persian Service has described "Khosro-e Khouban" as one of the greatest Persian novels which have been written in exile. The story is based on the deadly Iran-Iraq war which lasted for eight years in 1980s.

Reza Daneshvar was born in 1947 in Mashhad and started his serious literary work in early 1970s.

I met Reza Daneshvar once in 2008 in a Persian art exhibition in Europe. I told him "for those who have visited Iran's museums this exhibition has not much to offer..." and he bitterly responded: "but it's 3 decades that I have not been in Iran...". He was a kind and modest person. His voice was warm for story telling and he used that in a great way for his radio program "Prague, Spring 1968". 

Reza Daneshvar's death added another sad chapter to the life story of Persians in exile.

King Bahram and His Harpist on a Persian Pottery Piece

King Bahram and his harpist Azadeh, depicted on a 13th-century Persian pottery piece, are now housed in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. This artwork is inspired by the stories from Persia's national epic, the "Shahnameh" by Ferdowsi.

Princess Fatemeh Pahlavi : A Rare Photo

Recently I have discovered a quite rare photo of the Persian princess Fatemeh Pahlavi.

Fatemeh (also spelled Fatimeh) was Reza Shah Pahlavi's 10th child and half-sister of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the last Shah of Persia (Iran).

Princess Fatemeh was born in Tehran in 1928 and died in 1987 in London at the age of 58.

The death cause seems cancer. Daily Telegraph was among the first Western media which reported the news but did not give the cause of death or say exactly when or where she died. 

Read more:

http://www.apnewsarchive.com/1987/Princess-Fatemeh-Pahlavi/id-5d7f9d9ddceb0c0a9b941d16111f9e6f

Iran's New Wave of Crackdown on Journalists

Iran's government has started a new and huge campaign to crackdown on journalists.
Seraj Mirdamadi, the former contributor of various Persian media in Europe has been sentenced to 6 year imprisonment. Saba Azarpeyk who has been arrested by the Ministry of Intelligence is in a critical mental and physical condition.
Some others have been already sentenced to imprisonment. According to "Reporters without Borders", IRAN now is one of the biggest prisons of journalists in the world.

PARADE SCENE: Ceramic from Safavid Persia

This beautiful ceramic is coming from Persia. It has been made in 17th century during Safavid era; an important time in the history of Persian pottery and ceramic.

This ceramic is called "Parade Scene" and now is kept in the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, Canada.

Persian Lion and Sun Flags in Toronto Streets

People from every country live in Toronto. In these days because of 2014 World Cup many of them are using car flags. Persian community is quite big in the area.
 "Flag" is a very controversial issue among Iranians. The symbol in the middle of the Persian flag represents certain political ideology. In Toronto most car flags are different from the official flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran which is in use since 1979 Islamic Revolution.
 It clearly shows that the majority of Persians are against their government.

WATCH  VIDEO:

Persian Bride and Groom in 1944

A Persian bride and groom in 1944. The photo has been taken in the city Isfahan.

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The photo is from my family archive. Copying and posting that in other websites, blogs, printed materials, etc is not allowed without written permission.

Persian Communities in front of European Parliament, 8 May 2014

Yesterday around 100 people of Persian communities in Belgium, France, Germany and the Netherlands were gathered in front of EU Parliament in Brussels.
Their intention was to express their anger because of the terrible situation of human rights in Persia (Iran).

Various speakers including Isabelle Durant (European Parliament Vice President) expressed their support Human rights activist in Iran and also in exile. Ms. Durant thanked Anvar Mirsattari (President of EuroPers Foundation in Brussels) who is quite active to inform the EU parliament about the ideas of Persians in exile. Ms. Durant mentioned: "In my December trip to Tehran I talked to Iranian authorities about human rights issues. In many cases they were not accepting the points but I am happy that on behalf of you I talked to them."

The demonstration was organized by Iran's Human Rights Solidarity Network.

VIDEO:

Persian Fire-Jumping Festival in Holland

Tonight Persians in various parts of the Netherlands celebrated "Chaharshanbeh-Soori"; their ancient fire-jumping festival which its root goes back to thousands years ago.
Here are some photos of the celebration by the Delft Lake:

KARNA @ Persepolis Museum

KARNA is one of the ancient Persian musical instruments. This Karna which is now kept at Persepolis Museum near Shiraz shows the importance of military and epic music in ancient Persia (Iran).
The above Karna has been made in 6th century BC, when the Achaemenids were ruling the country.

The instrument was discovered during 1930s excavations in Persepolis.

Unfortunately no serious musical material has been left from ancient Persia so no one knows now how that music sounds. There are just historical objects and some names about the modes and musicians.

Karna in a smaller size is still popular in Persian folk music ensembles.

The above photo has been made by Payam Jahangiri, Shiraz-based photographer.

Persian Family on Norwegian Daily Cover

The Norwegian daily Byavisa in one of its recent issues has published the photo of an Iranian immigrant families in Norway whose members have reunioned in the city of Drammen.

According to officials statstics around 18,000 Persians live in Norway. The first wave of Norwegian-Iranians, migrated to Norway as a direct consequence of the political instability that followed the Islamic revolution in 1979. The subsequent difficult situation has since forced many others to seek refuge in Norway.

Persian Fritware from 13th-Century AD

This artistic work has been created in Persia in 13th-century; when the country was ruled by Seljuq dynasty.

was a Turkish Sunni Muslim dynasty that gradually adopted Persian culture and contributed to the Turko-Persian tradition in the medieval West and Central Asia.

This work is now kept at the Museum of The Hague City Hall.

Mossadeq Foundation in Geneva

Mossadeq Foundation which is based in Geneva is a great place for those who love Persian history, culture and art; hundreds of books in various languages, historical photos, old Persian songs cassettes and a lot of other materials which have been gathered at Mossadeq Foundation needs a lot of time to just be reviewed.

The foundation is managed by Dr Mohammad Mossadeq's grandson, Abdolmajid Bayat; a nice and old man who loves his country and nation. 

Persian Opposition Groups at Swedish Parliament

This morning, 25 May 2013, more than 100 members of Persian opposition groups started a two-day conference at Swedish parliament.
The event has been organized by Unity for Democracy in Iran (UDI).
The activists, analysts and journalists are coming to Stockholm from the North America and European countries to discuss the subject of free and fair election in Iran, beyond the current regime.

Mohammad Nasiri, an Olympic Gold Medalist for Persia

A rare photo of Mohammad Nasiri, Persian weightlifter and an Olympic Gold Medalist for Persia [Iran].
The photo shows him in 1973 World Championships in Havana, Cuba.
This photo was originally published in the Persian-language weekly 'Kayhan Havai'.
In 1995 Nasiri was elected member of the International Weightlifting Federation Hall of Fame.

Persian Ballet Dancers, Tehran, 1975

(Left to Right): Hayedeh Changizian and Jamshid Saghabashi, two of greatest Persian ballet dancers in Tehran.
In the above photo which was published in the Persian-language weekly "Kayhan Havai", they are rehearsing for "Bijan & Manijeh";  a ballet by Hossein Delhavi which was ready to perform at Roudaki Hall (Tehran Opera and Ballet House) in October 1975.
Dehlavi has composed this work inspired by Ferdowsi's Shahnameh (National Epic of Persia). The piece was later performed by Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Thomas Christian David.