TEHRAN –The southwestern province of Chaharmahal-Bakhtiari is ready to allow the private sector to utilize its historical public bathhouses, the provincial tourism chief has said.

Across the province, historical public bathhouses are available for investment and run as travel destinations by private investors, Alireza Jilan explained on Sunday.

It will be a great benefit to this region if these historical buildings are ceded into the private sector to ensure that these valuable structures are preserved and that tourism is developed accordingly, the official added.

Any restoration projects must, however, be coordinated with the province’s cultural heritage department, he noted.

Chaharmahal-Bakhtiari has various traditions and rituals related to tribal lifestyles. Special forms of music, dance, and clothing are noteworthy. It has considerable potential to become a vibrant tourist attraction because of its changing natural landscape.

The province is also a hub for making wool felt products, majorly of which are exported abroad. It is home to some 500 crafters, in over 250 workshops, making handmade felt products.

Bathhouses or ‘hammams’ in Iran were not the only places for bathing and cleaning up. They had a social concept for people who gathered at these places weekly.

It was a place where people talked with each other about their daily life and shared humor and news. There are still bathhouses in Iranian cities, but they do not have their social function anymore since most people have bathrooms in their homes due to the modern lifestyle.

Some cities had separate bathhouses for men and women. They were usually built next to each other. However, there were some bathhouses, which were used by men and women at different times of the day.

Persian literature is full of proverbs, narrations, and folk stories about bathhouses, which indicate the importance of the place in the past time.

ABU/AM