TEHRAN – Malayer, a global hub for woodcarving and carved-wood furniture, will host a vast sales exhibition of hand-carved furniture the next summer.

Registered by the World Crafts Council - Asia-Pacific Region (WCC-APR), the western Iranian town is top on the list for those who are interested in wooden furniture.

Located in Hamedan province, the ancient city is home to over 4,000 furniture workshops in which more than 8,000 wood masters and some 25,000 crafters are engaged.

Local crafters use the wood of beech, walnut, and plane trees to make different products such as traditional, classic, steel, and sofa furniture. Their other products are dining tables, desks, all kinds of chairs, beds, and decorative pieces.

Although the art had been practiced in Malayer for a long time ago, it is about a half-century that it has gained prosperity in the region.

Currently, more than 60 percent of the furniture and woodcarving products in Iran are reportedly produced in Malayer and they are sent to various Iranian cities or exported to Central Asian countries, Persian Gulf littoral states, Turkey and Iraq amongst some others.

AFM