TEHRAN - The Mir-Emad Museum of Calligraphy and Manuscripts, which is home to the most important collection of Iranian calligraphy works, is holding an exhibition of prominent calligraphers.

For over a thousand years, the creative and artistic hands of Iranian calligraphers have been creating artistic works on paper, tile and stone. And today their calligraphy has decorated museums, libraries, monuments and some private homes and businesses.

The building of the Mir-Emad Museum is one of the old monuments of the Sa'ad Abad Cultural and Historical Complex. After the Islamic Revolution, the unnecessary sections of the building were removed and some changes were made to the building. Then, when it was ready to become a museum, it was named after Mir-Emad Al-Hosseini Seifi Ghazvini, a master calligrapher of the 11th century A.H.

The building consists of two floors and is a combination of traditional Iranian architecture and European architecture. It was built in the 13th century A.H.

In addition to Mir-Emad's calligraphy, the museum displays pre-Islamic calligraphy works and Islamic era calligraphy works from the 3rd century A.H. to 14th century A.H.

The calligraphy works belonging to the pre-Islamic era begin with Elamite and Pahlavi Sassanid cuneiform manuscripts including examples from the ancient Temple of Choghazanbil in Susa.

Among the decorative and basic calligraphy works on display at the museum are practical objects such as pottery and manuscripts.

Calligraphy works of masters Ahmad Neirizi, Mohammad Ebrahim Qomi, and Vesal Shirazi are also on display.