TEHRAN - Over 5,400 billion rials ($6 million) worth of products made by Iranian artisans were sold at 12,000 makeshift stalls and local marketplaces during Nowruz 1404 holidays, said an official with the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts.Farzad Ojani told IRNA that since the necessary infrastructure, such as POS machines, is available to the artists, the sale rate of handicrafts in Nowruz markets and fairs was declared by artisans to the cultural heritage experts, and they registered it in systems created by the Tourism Ministry.He said provinces of Khorasan Razavi and Gilan launched over 1,000 handicrafts pavilions in Nowruz marketplaces, given the number of cities and cultural heritage sites, and ranked top grade.The type of handicrafts is related to the indigenous fields of each province, he said.
Therefore, the products of each region differ, he added.For example, knifemaking and tapestry is common in Zanjan province, while ceramic making is popular in East Azarbaijan province, basket weaving in Ilam province, khatamkari in Isfahan province, and felt making and carpet weaving in Chaharmahal-Bakhtiari province.He said the handicrafts experts of the ministry paid close attention to fair pricing of handicraft products to define the prices within the market price range.We try to use all capacities and sites under the domination of the cultural heritage department to encourage the visitors to purchase local handicrafts after visiting the historical sites.Based on available data, Iran exported $224 million worth of handicrafts during the past Persian calendar year (ended on March 20, 2025), with an equal amount estimated to have been exported through suitcase trade, according to the Minister of Cultural Heritage, Tourism, and Handicrafts, Seyyed Reza Salehi-Amiri.KD.
This article first appeared/also appeared in Tehran Times