If Iranian civilization has extended its cultural influence to Central Asia (Samarkand, Bukhara) and Northern India (the Mughal Empire), contemporary Iran holds an extraordinary heritage, the riches of which we measure every day. If cities like Isfahan and Shiraz have long been the focus of attention, heritage, and awareness of its importance, continue to be nourished by discoveries and revaluations: ancient cities are being excavated, like Jiroft in the early 2000s; we rediscover ancient villages or lost fortresses; traditional houses are being restored; old techniques are being used again, such as the famous qanat (underground water galleries) or badgir (wind towers, serving as ventilation in desert cities).
Historic cities and villages
The Si o Seh Pol Bridge (17th century), Isfahan. Photograph: ©Patrick Ringgenberg.
Sufi mausoleum of Torbat-e Jam, 13th-15th century. Photograph: ©Patrick Ringgenberg.
Armenian Church (Vank), Isfahan, 17th century. Photograph: ©Patrick Ringgenberg.
The international isolation of Iran in the 1980s and 1990s encouraged a rediscovery, by Iranians, of their own homeland. The result is a country which, under embargo, lacks the means to restore, maintain and promote its heritage, but which has been fortunately unaffected by mass tourism, and which still preserves its heritage like a secret garden. It is both the luck and the specificity of Iranian tourism, which inspire the philosophy of Shamse & Abrisham: to bring you into a world of unique beauties, and to allow you discoveries and an experience that no country, today, in a world victim of overtourism, can no longer offer.
Meybod Citadel. Photograph: ©Patrick Ringgenberg.
Tabatabai House, Kashan, 19th century. Photograph: ©Patrick Ringgenberg.
To find out more about Iranian heritage:
