TEHRAN – Iranian National Commission for UNESCO director Hojjatollah Ayyubi has said that Mashhad in Khorasan Razavi Province will be hosting a conference and exhibition of calligraphy on the Silk Road.

He made the remarks in a report published by the commission on Sunday about an Iranian delegation’s meetings with foreign officials, including UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay, during the 40th UNESCO General Conference, which is currently underway at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris.

Ayyubi said that the idea of holding the conference and the exhibit was discussed on the sidelines of the UNESCO conference.

“Representatives of China, Japan, Korea and even Islamic countries are expected to attend the event,” he added.

He also said that the idea is a big project beginning with calligraphy and will next continue with other arts, including miniature painting and illumination. However, he gave no exact date for the event.

Ayyubi further noted that the idea that the Silk Road not only is a commercial route, but also a road to exchange thoughts was discussed earlier during a cultural exhibition in Hamedan in September. 

The cultural exhibition revolving around peace and friendship along the Silk Road started concurrently with the 6th meeting of the Coordinating Committee on the Serial Transnational World Heritage Nomination of the Silk Road.

The ancient Silk Road has existed for thousands of years, passing through many different empires, kingdoms, reigns and societies throughout history. At certain times in its long history, traders could travel freely along these routes, whereas at others, travel was difficult or dangerous.

According to UNESCO, the Silk Road enriched the countries it passed through, transporting cultures, religions, languages and of course material goods into societies across Europe, Asia and Africa, and uniting them all with a common thread of cultural heritage and plural identities.

Photo: A calligraphy work by the master of Persian calligraphy Gholamhossein Amirkhani.

RM/MMS/YAW