TEHRAN — The head of Hormozgan province’s tourism department announced that a national registration plaque designating Bahmani as a basket-weaving village will be unveiled soon, coinciding with National Handicrafts Week.

According to Miras Arya (CHTN), Mohammad Mohseni added that the unveiling ceremony will be held at the Nafas Recreation and Tourism Complex of the village, which is located in Hormozgan province, on June 11. 

Pointing to the special status of Bahmani village in basket weaving art, he said the registration of this village as a national village will pave the way for promoting regional handicrafts, attracting tourists, and improving the livelihood and cultural level of local people.

This achievement is the result of the restless efforts of the region’s artisans and crafters in preserving and promoting local arts, he said, adding this is an important step in line with safeguarding the traditional heritage.

 Saying that registration of cultural artifacts is a specialized and expert process, he pointed out that Hormozgan Cultural Heritage, Tourism, and Handicrafts Department always pursues the identification of registration capabilities in various fields, in line with its cultural mission.

He recalled that the dossier of registration of Bahmani village was sent to a specialized committee in 2020, but didn’t achieve to final registration due to failure in gaining the required scores.

Mohseni continued that with efforts of Handicrafts Department, effective measures were made such as approval of a standard number for "Minab Mat", launching specialized basket weaving desk, forming mat cluster by the Industrial Townships Company, obtaining the National Seal of Authenticity for the work "Badil" from Bahmani village, and registering a geographical indication of Minab mat which finally led to national registration of Bahmani village.

He said that previously in 2019, Bandar Lengeh was recognized as national city of Golabtoon. He mentioned that 19 handicraft works of Hormozgan province have been registered on Iran’s Intangible Cultural Heritage List.

The skill of making oud has also been registered on the UNESCO World Heritage List, he added.

The Director General of Hormozgan Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts Department noted: Branding and registering works is an important step towards presence in global markets. Apart from preserving and promoting the handicrafts, it plays an effective role in attracting tourists and investment, he added.

At end, Mohseni appreciated the support of all institutions and influential individuals on this path such as Representative of the people of eastern Hormozgan province in Parliament, Minab Governor, the Industrial Townships Company, Hormozgan University, Bahmani Village Handicraft Cooperatives, artisans and art lovers.

He expressed the hope that this success will be a beginning for global registration of rich arts of this region.

KD