TEHRAN-A restoration project has commenced on a Qajar-era (1789-1925) Bazaar in Aradan county, north-central Semnan province, a local tourism official has said.

The project involves repairing the damaged parts and flooring, Abbas Khaksar explained on Tuesday. 

The historical structure has been inscribed on the national heritage list.

Bazaars in the ancient Islamic world were vividly described in the folktales of “The Thousand and One Nights.”

Bazaars are typically roofed for protection against the hot desert sun, either with a single roof, with individual vaulted cupolas or domes, or with awnings.

In Iranian culture, bazaars have made great contributions to commercial activities. Meanwhile their extended activities can be traced to social, cultural, political, and religious roles.

Most mazes and passages offer certain commodities such as carpets, metalwork, toys, clothing, jewelry, kitchen appliances, traditional spices, herbal remedies, and natural perfumes. One can also bump into colorful grocery stores, bookbinders, blacksmiths, tinsmiths, coppersmiths, tobacconists, tailors, flag sellers, broadcloth sellers, carpenters, shoemakers, and knife-makers.

In addition, there are divided carpet sections in a bazaar that enable visitors to browse hand-woven Persian carpets and rugs. From another point of view, bazaars are also synonyms for foods, with their unmissable colorful stalls of vegetables, herbs, and spices. Yet, most of these ingredients might be mysterious to a foreign eye.

Browsing through a traditional bazaar may provide new experiences and fresh points of view on ancient Iran. Such excursions can be made either in person or by “off-the-beaten-track” tours. Not only it’s an opportunity to discover dozens of unique local ingredients, but it’s also a chance to taste street foods and delicacies, in some traditional bakery known only by locals and shopkeepers.

While roaming over a vaulted bazaar, people-watching and even mingling with them is one of the best ways to take the pulse of the ancient land.

The main populated centers of Semnan province lie along the ancient Silk Road (and modern-day Imam Reza Expressway), linking Rey (Tehran) with Khorasan (Mashhad). While few visitors spend much time in the area, driving through, you can easily seek out several well-preserved caravanserais (notably Dehnamak and Ahowan), cisterns (the Cafe Abenbar in Garmsar is a special treat), and ruined mud citadels (Padeh is lumpy but fascinating.). The large, bustling cities of Semnan, Damghan, and Shahrud (Bastam) all have a small selection of historic buildings and Semnan has a fine old covered bazaar.

Semnan is bounded by the provinces of Khorasan Razavi and South Khorasan on the east, Isfahan on the south, Qom and Tehran on the west, and Mazandaran and North Khorasan on the north.

SAB/