TEHRAN – The recent US and Israeli military offensive against Iran, which began on February 28, has raised widespread concerns about the security of the country’s historical and cultural heritage. Prominent monuments such as Golestan Palace and Naqsh-e Jahan Square have been damaged, the report said, highlighting the possibility of irreparable loss to monuments that reflect centuries of Iranian civilization.
In an exclusive interview with Tehran Times, Pierfrancesco Carieri, professor of Iranian archeology at the University of Bologna and director of numerous Italian-Iranian archaeological missions in Persepolis and Pasargadae, reflects on the symbolic and psychological aspects of targeting cultural landmarks, the challenges of restoring blast-damaged monuments, and the international community’s obligations under treaties such as the 1954 Hague Convention. Mr. Carieri also considers the broader impact of these attacks on Iran’s national identity and the world’s cultural heritage.
The text of the interview is below.
Given the reports of damage to sites such as Golestan Palace and the historic center of Isfahan, how do you assess the global cultural importance of these sites and the potential impact of the damage?
These two important ruins are both located in a city that served as the capital of Persia (as Iran was internationally known until 1934) at two different times. Golestan is located in Tehran, the capital of Persia during the Qajar period (late 18th century to early 20th century). Meanwhile, Naqsh-e-Jahan Square, flanked by magnificent buildings, is said to belong to Shah Abbas, a major ruler of the Safavid dynasty. (15th to 18th centuries), we helped build the forerunner of modern Iran.
Do you think targeting cultural landmarks during conflicts is part of a broader psychological or symbolic warfare strategy?
The invasion of Iran by Israel and the United States is so reprehensible that we are tempted to answer in the affirmative without hesitation. However, since my college days, I have adopted the principles stated by Gisela Richter, the great historian of ancient art. He argued that artifacts suspected of being counterfeit remain authentic until proven otherwise, as is the case in court. So we try to assess whether the evidence is available. The main reason is that the selection of two Persian capitals in the first two attacks is undoubtedly symbolic. But even more decisive is the fact that in early 2020 Donald Trump threatened to destroy 52 cultural institutions in Iran. For cultural figures who, like Iranians, care about their country’s history, this threat was intolerable and revealed Trump’s intent to wage psychological warfare.
Many analysts argue that attacks on cultural heritage are an attempt to undermine national identity. Based on your expertise, how valid is this interpretation in the Iranian context?
That could be the case, as the US consistently conducts flawed analyzes and worsens the situation after intervening. However, we know that Iranians are very proud of their country, act accordingly and remain loyal to national unity.
How difficult is it to restore ancient structures damaged by blasts?
The restoration of damaged ancient buildings is an architectural specialty, the first and most important step of which is the documentation of existing fragments and the study of traditional building techniques.
My country, Italy, has had a major influence on the development of restoration practices in Iran, both for Islamic and archaeological monuments, thanks to the efforts of the Italian Institute for the Middle and Far East, IsMEO, which established a school in Isfahan headed by Eugenio Galdieri. This, thanks to Giuseppe Tilia’s research at Persepolis, led to the training of Hassan Rasaz, Iran’s leading expert in this field. The fact that the restoration was supervised by the talented experts of Mohammad Hassan Talebian and Rasul Vatandoust within the Iranian Cultural Heritage Organization, and later within the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, places Iran among the countries with the highest standards of restoration. In this century, Persepolis also saw joint restoration efforts between Iran and Italy.
However, these are very expensive repairs and, in the event of war, would be in unfair competition with the dramatic exigencies faced by those affected by bombing. Since these are registered as UNESCO World Heritage Sites, international cooperation is expected for their restoration.
Do attacks that damage cultural heritage violate international frameworks such as the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property?
Indeed, this attack violates the 1954 Hague Convention you mentioned, as well as subsequent updates such as the 1972 Paris Protocol. But the contempt shown by the United States and Israel for these documents, which were created precisely to prevent a repeat of World War II-like devastation, confirms that both countries lie outside the bounds of civilized norms and should therefore be isolated. Israel’s position is even more serious. Israel is using archeology to build its own expansionist ideology in the Middle East, and thus certainly has rare recognition in the United States (especially in the White House).
What role should organizations such as UNESCO play in documenting and responding to such incidents?
There are two roles that UNESCO and other international organizations should, and indeed should, play in this situation. Because, in addition to the more technical functions related to the preservation and promotion of the cultural heritage of each member state, fundamental political efforts must be carried out to persuade governments that do not follow the appropriate guidelines.
Finally, based on your expertise and experience in Iranian archeology, do you have any additional points or perspectives you would like to share regarding the recent attacks and their impact on Iran’s cultural and historical heritage?
I have sent this message to the university’s vice president for international relations and am awaiting a response.
Iran’s Ministry of Culture has released an official report on the damage to architectural heritage caused by the invasion of Iran by Israeli and US forces and sent it to cultural institutions across Europe. The damage also affected monuments on UNESCO’s World Heritage List, including Golestan Palace in Tehran and Naqsh-e-Jahan in Isfahan. I urge our university to issue a press release condemning the invaders’ attack, if it has not already done so. This is a violation of the 1954 Hague Convention and the 1972 Paris Convention, and is also an expression of solidarity with the Iranian people, who must protect their own way of life and culture as well as the 29 World Heritage Sites within their territory.
We recall that as of January 2020, the President of the United States had threatened to destroy 52 cultural institutions in Iran, but protests around the world forced him to backtrack.
If we do not act concretely and quickly in this case, we will be complicit in this crime, adding to the many we are already passive accomplices in, condemning this act in every forum, which violates all rules of international law, and which unfortunately in other circumstances the harmful propaganda of the Western media has tried in vain to justify, and which in this case risks robbing us all of our heritage as global citizens.