Photos of Shia holy shrines in Iraq on display at Tehran center

TEHRAN,Nov.12(MNA) – An exhibition of photos displaying views of the holy shrines of the Shia Imams in Iraq opened during a ceremony at Tehran’s Bahman Cultural Center on Sunday. Photographer Mohammad Khoshru, Iran’s Deputy Culture Minister for Artistic Affairs Ali Moradkhani, Tehran City Council Chairman Ahmad Masjed-Jamei and several cultural officials attended the opening ceremony of the showcase entitled “Prostration of Sages”. The exhibit, which runs until November 21, features 36 photos focus on architecture, entrance doors and public places of the shrines of Imam Ali (AS) in Najaf, Imam Hussein (AS) in Karbala, Imam Musa al-Kadhim (AS) and Imam Muhammad Taqi (AS) in Kadhimiya. “The shrines and holy places are the symbols of Muslims’ ideology and their devotion to the household of Prophet (S),” Moradkhani said during the ceremony. Masjed-Jamei also addressed the audience at the ceremony. “This exhibit displays different forms of Iranian art including mirror-encrusted and tile works in these holy shrines,” he stated. He said that holding such an exhibition enhances the appreciation visitors have for religious arts. “I have taken the photos during my trips to Iraq from 2009 until 2011,” Khoshru said. He added that the showcase features photos of the first zarih (outer sarcophagus enclosure) for the holy shrine of Imam Hussein (AS), which dated back to the Buyid dynasty (in 10th and 11th centuries) to the present zarih that was designed by the prominent Iranian miniaturist Mahmud Farshchian and installed in 2012. The exhibition has been organized to commemorate the the mourning season of the lunar month of Muharram, in which Imam Hussein (AS) arose to struggle against the Umayyad ruler Yazid’s oppression in 680 CE.