TEHRAN –On Sunday, a handicrafts exhibit was inaugurated in Kakh-e Morvarid (“Pearl Palace”), once a summer royal residence in Alborz province. 

A total of 50 booths have been set up in this exhibition, of which some 70 percent are dedicated to local handicrafts, and 30 percent to souvenirs from other provinces such as Qom, Isfahan, Gilan, and Lorestan, the provincial tourism chief Fereydoun Mohammadi said on Monday. 

One of the highlights is the giant Siah-Chadors (“black tents”) pitched by participants from Kermanshah province, the official added.

The exhibit will come to an end on July 18, he noted.

With 14 entries, Iran ranks first globally for the number of cities and villages registered by the World Crafts Council, as China with seven entries, Chile with four, and India with three ones come next.

Also known as Shams Palace, the monument was constructed from 1966 to 1968 under the administration of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, by American architect William Wesley Peters as a residence for princess Shams Pahlavi, elder sister of Mohammadreza Pahlavi, the last Shah of Iran.

The palace covers an area of one hundred and eleven hectares. The structure of the building is made from cement and the sky; it looks like a flounder fish that is holding a pearl. All architectural spaces are built under a spiral roof with various skylights in the shape of pearl beads. 

ABU/AFM