TEHRAN – Exhibitors and artisans in Yazd have recently launched 45 handicraft marketplaces across the touristic Iranian province.

The majority of marketplaces have been set up in commemoration of Noruz, the Iranian New Year, near major travel destinations.

In addition to sales exhibits, the marketplaces stage live performances and workshops during which artisans showcase skills in the fields of pottery, ceramic, basketry, personal ornamentation, traditional textile and tiles, needlework, leatherwork, and kilim carpets, to name a few, IRNA reported.

According to the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts, the value of Iran’s handicrafts exports stood at $400 million during the first ten months of the current Iranian calendar year 1401 (Mar. 21, 2022– Jan. 20, 2023), which shows a 30 percent increase year on year.

The Islamic Republic exported some $320 million worth of handicrafts in 1400. Iraq, Afghanistan, Germany, the United States, and the coastal states of the Persian Gulf are among the countries that traditionally import ceramics, porcelain, hand-woven clothing, personal jewelry, and semi-precious stones from Iran.

With its winding lanes, a forest of badgirs (wind catchers), mud-brick houses, atmospheric alleyways and centuries of history, Yazd is a delightful place to stay, being referred to as a ‘don't miss’ destination by almost all travel associates in the region. The oasis city is wedged between the northern Dasht-e Kavir and the southern Dasht-e Lut on a flat plain ringed by mountains.

Yazd has an interesting mix of people as well, some 10 percent of whom follow the ancient religion of Zoroastrianism. Yazd Jameh Mosque, Dowlatabad Garden, the Yazd Atash Behram, also known as Atashkadeh-e Yazd, Towers of Silence, and adjacent desert landscape are among its tourist sites.

AFM