Join the historian Tom Holland in illustrated conversation with Ali Ansari discussing the role of the Persians in world civilisation, looking at their contributions to religion, philosophy, politics, literature and wider culture, including horticulture and fashion. From Paradise and the walled garden to the business suit and the high heel: what has been the impact of ‘Persia’ on the Western imagination?

Tom Holland is a best-selling historian and co-host of the ground-breaking podcast The Rest is History, described by one commentator as ‘probably the most listened-to podcast in the country’. His many books include Persian Fire (2006), The Shadow of the Sword (2013), and Dominion (2020). His latest book Pax about the heyday of the Roman Empire is due out this spring.

Ali Ansari is Professor of Iranian History at the University of St Andrews, an occasional guest on The Rest is History, and author of Modern Iran since 1797 (2019), The Politics of Nationalism in Modern Iran (2012), and Iran: A Very Short Introduction (2014). He is currently researching a book on the Politics of History in Modern Iran.

The Takkiyya Mu’avin al-Mulk is a building complex in the city of Kermanshah in western Iran, dedicated to the annual commemoration of the martyrdom of Husayn ibn ʿAli at the Battle of Karbala in 680, an event of seminal significance to Shiʿi Islam.  Private takkiyyas built by social elites were a phenomenon of the Qajar period, with their construction motivated by a political quest for legitimacy. This presentation briefly explores the intersection of art and architecture, popular piety, and the politics of legitimation.  Through an examination of the building and its decorative programme, it addresses issues of patronage, Shiʿi iconography and popular religious practices during the early 20^th century in Iran.  It further argues for the role of takkiyyas in the creation of a sense of community and group identity, and in the early stage of the emergent idea of nationhood at the time. Nahid Massoumeh Assemi is an independent scholar who specialises in the art and architectural history of Qajar Iran. She is a Bahari Visiting Fellow at the Bodleian Libraries, 2023-24 and a member of the Contemporary Art Council of the Iran Heritage Foundation. She holds a PhD from the Courtauld Institute of Art, London and an MA in Fine Arts from Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris where she was trained as a classical artist. She is also a miniaturist, illuminator and calligrapher working on commission.  Her book on the Takkiya will be published later this year. "This is a remarkable book, which I highly recommend.  Its focus is the Takkiya Mu’avin al-Mulk, and its rich decorative programmes. The author paints around these a colourful and highly informative picture of Iranian Shi’ism. Its rites and its ceremonies. In addition, he brings to life the Takkiya’s wealthy merchant patron within the setting of early 20^th century Iranian society and the country’s constitutional movement." Professor James Allan, Oxford University

The talk will focus on the American Presbyterian mission, which began in the early 1830s and began to decline with the Great Depression’s retrenchment and Reza Shah’s nationalist requirements, eventually leading to the shutting of all mission schools in 1940, except for the one which they ran for their own children, which continued until the 1978-79 revolutionary year as an international school for English-speaking children. Michael Zirinsky is Professor Emeritus at Boise State University, where he taught modern European and Middle Eastern history.  His publications focus on western relations with Iran during the first half of the twentieth century.  His articles regarding Presbyterian missionaries in Iran have appeared in the Iranian Journal of International Affairs, American Presbyterians, Nime-ye Digar, Iranian Studies, and Encylopaedia Iranica.  Diplomatic history articles have appeared in the International Journal of Middle East Studies and The Foreign Service Journal. He is currently working on a book about Anglo-American activity in Iran during The Great War. He himself was educated at the school in Tehran. NB This will be a Zoom lecture. Details will be sent to members and guests nearer the time.  

THIS EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE

The Sasanian era (ca. 224-651 AD) was a period of unprecedented cultural, scientific and economic achievements in Iranian history. Ideologically, the Sasanian empire was founded upon the religion of Zoroastrianism, a main feature of which was the worship of the sacred Fire in dedicated fire temples. Many of these fire temples were extremely wealthy, and apart from being religious institutions they also played important roles in the everyday economy of the empire. This lecture will attempt to explain in an accessible manner the main features of the Zoroastrian fire temple economy in Sasanian Iran and highlight new insights in modern research regarding the role of money, commerce and profit in the Sasanian economy.

Aleksander Engeskaug was awarded a grant by the Society to help him finish his doctoral thesis at SOAS on this subject. He impressed us by his ability to make quite complex ideas easily accessible to a non-specialist audience.

 In 1903, Lorimer was commissioned by the British Raj to compile a handbook for British diplomats and agents in the Persian Gulf region. Initially given only six months, he insisted on being granted more time to ensure the handbook was thorough. The result was the 5,000 page two-volume Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf and Central Arabia. Due to the secrecy of the document, it was not acknowledged in his obituaries and public knowledge of the document only became apparent when the document was declassified in 1955. The Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf is more commonly known by historians and academics alike simply as ‘Lorimer’s’, a respectful nod to its creator. Lorimer was another of the small cadre of prominent early 20^th Century British officials who played a considerable part in setting out the future of Central Arabia and Persia, but one whose endeavours have long been forgotten. Alan Dillon served for 12 years in the Royal Marines before changing his profession from one of soldiery to diplomacy, joining the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 2000.  He has worked extensively in South Asia and the Middle East. He is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, author of Captain Shakespear, Desert Exploration, Arabian Intrigue and the Rise of Ibn Sa’ud, published by Medina Publishing in 2019 and Lorimer, His Gazetteer and Britain’s Pursuit of Knowledge, to be published in summer 2024. This event is for members only and prior registration will be required.  

The artistic patronage of the second Qajar ruler Fath Ali Shah (r. 1797-1834) is well known. Less studied is his patronage of the major shrines within his lands. in Qom, Mashhad and Iraq. This included the building of new courtyards, the gilding of domes and iwans, and the gifting of doors inlaid with rubies and emeralds. This lecture explores how the Shah's lavish gifts to these shrines shaped his image as a pious and generous ruler. Fuchsia Hart is a member of our Council. She has provided lectures and courses at The Wallace Collection, the V&A, the Royal Asiatic Society, SOAS, and Sotheby’s, among other places. In the past, she has worked for the Bodleian Library at the University of Oxford, the Art History Department of the University of Warwick, and for the Turquoise Mountain Foundation in Kabul, and has spent time in Beirut, Damascus, Amman, and Tehran. She  currently holds a BA in Persian, an MPhil in Islamic Art with Arabic, and is working towards the completion of a doctorate at the University of Oxford, also in Islamic Art, with a focus on shrines in 19th-century Iran and Iraq. The lecture will follow the Annual General Meeting, which starts at 6.30pm.