TEHRAN--A ceremony to commemorate the millennium of minaret of Semnan Jameh Mosque will be held on Wednesday with the aim of transforming this heritage site into a historical and cultural brand of the city.

Announcing this, Semnan Governor Mehdi Samimian told IRNA on Monday that the minaret of Jameh Mosque is a historical, heritage and millennial monument that should become the brand of Semnan.

Referring to the 1,000-year-old history of minaret of Semnan Jameh Mosque, he said that 85 percent of the country's historical monuments belong to the Safavid, Zandieh and Qajar eras, while minaret of Semnan Jameh Mosque is 1,028 years old. 

In order to introduce this historical monument, its commemoration ceremony will be held on December 10, coinciding with the anniversary of the birth of Hazrat Zahra (AS), in the Red Crescent Hall of Semnan, he said.

He also said that 1,000 guests have been invited to commemorate the millennium of the minaret of Semnan's Jameh Mosque. “The main goal of holding this event is to introduce this minaret as the brand of Semnan, because throughout the history, this historical monument has been the center of various rituals for people and has served the needs of citizens, and its current historical and cultural status must be institutionalized.”

The governor criticized forgetting the importance of minaret of Semnan Jameh Mosque, adding that attracting domestic and foreign tourists is another goal of the event.

“Throughout this ceremony, an effort is being made to create consensus for introducing the October 22 as ‘Semnan Day’ so that the General Culture Council of Iran can make a final decision on it”

He referred to the efforts to register two historical monuments out of 156 nationally registered monuments in Semnan city, including Jameh Mosque and the Soltani or Imam Mosque, as part of the ceremony to commemorate  minaret of Semnan.

This issue was previously requested in a letter from Semnan Governor-General Mohammad Javad Kolivand to the minister of cultural heritage, and a petition is being collected in the commemoration ceremony for the global registration of the two unique monuments, he added. 

Samimian continued that Minister of Cooperatives, Labor and Social Welfare Ahmad Midari, is on a trip to the province and has been invited to attend the ceremony.  Also, the Chinese ambassador to Iran has been invited because of Semnan's sister city relationship with the city of Urumqi, he added.

“The Uzbek ambassador to Iran has been invited because of the historical history of the cities of Samarkand and Bukhara, and the Tajik ambassador to Iran has been invited because Mir Seyyed Ali Hamedani, a student of Alaoddoleh Semnani, is buried in that country.”

He added that the ambassadors of Qatar and Oman to Iran have also been invited to this ceremony, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is following up on the presence of these ambassadors in Semnan.

According to the governor, the presence of Iranian singer Vahid Taj and the performance of music in Semnani language is the other side program.

The unveiling ceremony of the book ‘The Great Mosque of Semnan (a lasting work of 14 centuries of architectural art)’ researched and written by Mohammad Ali Mokhlesi and the unveiling ceremony of the stamp of minaret of Jameh Mosque minaret are two side programs of the ceremony, he added.

Minaret of Semnan’s Jameh Mosque dates back to the Seljuk and Al-e Ziar eras. 

KD