With her age-old history stretching ten-thousand years, the land of Persia boasts a unique geographical and climatic diversity. It owes this to the Alborz and Zagros mountain ranges. Over the centuries this climatic and geographical diversity has contributed to a distinctive cultural and vernacular architectural diversity in Iran.

The first half of the lecture will focus on the wide-ranging vernacular architecture in Iran in a variety of geographical and climatic settings including the hot and arid (arid and semi-arid), hot and moist, cold and temperate, and moist climatic regions.

In the second half, using Hawraman/Uramanat Cultural and Natural Landscape as an example, Professor Talebian will delve into the significance and values of this World Heritage site including its intangible cultural heritage, the way local communities take pride in their identity, traditions and way of life, and the challenges faced in the protection and management of this exceptional landscape.

Hawraman or Uramanat, inscribed in 2021, is located at the core of the Zagros mountain ranges, in West Iran, between the two provinces of Kermanshah and Kurdistan. The history of settlement in this region dates back to a period prior to the dominance of the Greeks and the rule of the Assyrians, the Mud and Achaemenid dynasties. The harsh environment of the region, its many mountain ranges, valleys and fierce flowing rivers have paved the way for the inhabitants to interact with their environment and transform natural threats to unique opportunities for living and enhancing their quality of life. It has led to various creative approaches to architecture, well-displayed in the terraced builds and terraced gardens set up on rocky plains, a lifestyle based on animal husbandry (the setting up of temporary colonies for nomadic lifestyles), various festivities, rites, arts and handicrafts that are all authentic and original to the region.

Dr. Hossam Mahdy, President of ICOMOS’s International Committee for Vernacular Architecture, will briefly respond to the lecture before a Q&A session with the audience.