Historic monuments contain humanistic and artistic messages that could be well defined in the framework of their historic surveys. A fusion of beliefs and cultures may be manifested in the realm of a monument. Therefore it is necessary to bear in mind that historic monuments are not merely a structural-technical problem. They should be regarded as a series of thought and behavioral systems revealing the life of the people in a special period.
From this point of view, the need for conservation starts with the monument itself. With the passage of time, that is, as a result of the change in the initial purpose of the monument, and the changes in the usage and exploitation, conservation will be set forth in different ways. It is important to bear in mind that conservation is a process with certain specifications that should be considered for each monument.
Golestan Palace (palace of flowers) is the oldest of the historic monuments in Tehran. It belongs to the group of royal buildings that were enclosed within the mud-thatched walls of Tehran's historic Arg. (Citadal). The Arg was built in Safavid period (1424-1734). In its present state, Golestan palace is the result of roughly years of constructions and renovations form Zandieh era (1750-1779) up to the Pahlavi era (1925-1979). It has beautiful architecture, magnificent architectural decorations, and each monument inside the palace have its own unique history. The palace also contains many rare objects.
The buildings inside Golestan Palace underwent two completely different phases in their construction from Qajar era (1797-1925) to Pahlavi era (1925-1979). The first phase witnessed unity and continuity in building construction and the second phase witnessed mostly destruction.
The Technical Bureau of Conservation of Ancient monuments were in charge of all historic buildings including the Golestan Palace. During the first years of Islamic Revolution, this bureau was doing conservation and protective operations for the monuments whenever it was necessary. In 1986, the Cultural Heritage Organization was established. As a result, the maintenance of Golestan Palace as well as other historical monuments was assigned to the new organization.
Under the supervision of cultural Heritage Organization a totally new approach was adopted towards conservation of historical monuments and objects. The conservation of the monuments in Golestan Palace underwent a complete research. It was revealed that the cause of the destruction of the monuments can be categorized under the following factors:

1-Environmental factor:

a: moisture: the sewage wells, underground waters and the sorption power of constructional materials in Golestan Palace monuments caused the penetration of moisture in to the foundation of the walls form underneath. The lack of the good isolation system on the roofs, irregular services of the down pipes form above, added to the damage from the top.
b- pollution: location of the monuments in the city center and the soulphoric acid in the environment caused intensive erosion in some parts.
c- Erosion of traditional materials: This erosion took palace inside the monuments in the course of time.

2. Human factor:

The people, who acted without enough technical skills, caused serious damages to some buildings. A good example is the Badgir monument that will be explained later. Another similar example is the construction of the buildings that have no harmony with the other monuments Picture no.1 is one of the worst examples.

Picture no.1

Due to the existing limitations and based on the possibilities and conservational methods, the new approach is to renovate the monuments in accordance with the needs. The new applications are harmonized with the other parts of the collection. The major conservations that were done form 1994-2002 in Golestan Palace are as follows:

1-Conservation of the Talar Almas

Talar Almas or (diamond hall) was changed to the museum of Fath Ali Shah(1797-1834) souvenirs.

Talar Almas before conservation

Talar Almas after conservation

2- Renovation of ponds:

The ponds in front of the Takht-e-Marmar and Talar Aienh (mirror Hall) were renovated.
a:The ponds in front of Takht-e-Marmar were an oval and a rectangular water views. Their conservation started in 1994 and was finished in 1995.

Rectangular pond during renovation

Rectangular pond after renovation

b: The Renovation of the circled shaped water view. This water view was in front of Talar Aienh and was about 100 meters long. Part of the water view was renovated.

The circle shaped pond before renovation

The circle shaped pond after renovation

3- Renovation of Eastern and Western side rooms of Takht-e- Marmar
The paintings in this rooms dates back to Fath Ali Shah's (1797-1835) period.

Easter side room after renovation

Because of the previously indicated reasons, these side rooms were seriously damaged during the Pahlavi and Revolution era. The conservation of these side rooms started in 1993 and lasted till 1996.

Western side room before renovation

Western side room after renovation

4-Conservation of Chador Khaneh

In the southern side of the Golestan Palace, there is a monument called chador Khaneh (tent house). The construction of the monument dates back to the time that Badgir and Talar Almas was built. Chador Khaneh was renovated in 1996.

Chador Khaneh before renovation

Chador Khaneh after renovation

5- Conservation and renovation of Howz Khaneh located in the northern wing of Golestan Palace under Talar Adj.
The building is now used to exhibit the works of European painter dedicated to Qajar kings.

6- Talar Bolour

This hall is facing Nasser Khosro Ave. It has a beautiful balcony with exceptional mirror work. The hall was renovated in 1998.

A picture of Talar Bolour during conservation

7-Replacement of Wooden Trusses with metal ones
Due to the deterioration of the roof trusses and the fire damage probability, the wooden trusses were replaced by metal ones. The replacement was done for Talar Berelian, Talar Adj, Talar Aineh ,Talar Salam. And Takht-e-Marmar.

The gable roof of Talar Adj before conservation

The gable roof of Talar Adj after conservation

8-Khabgah renovation

The change of the application of khabgah monument to the library and document center of the Golestan Palace.

Khabgah building before renovation

Khabgah building after renovation

9-Kakhe-Abyaz renovation

In 1988 the conservation of the White Castle was started and lasted till 1999.

First floor of the White Castle before renovation

First floor of the White Castle after renovation

10-Renovation of Talar-e Berelian

After the replacement of the roof trusses the conservation of the mirrors and plaster moldings of the beautiful Talar Berelian was started. It was finished in 1998.

Talar Berelian before conservation

Talar Berelian after conservation

11- Badgir Building

In the southern wing of the Golestan Palace, next to the Chador Khaneh, there is a very beautiful and exceptional monument called the Badgir. It was built during the reign of Fath Ali Shah (1797-1834). Ministry of transportation back in 1974 renovated parts of this monument to create the heating system for the building. Unfortunately, due to the lack of experience, the roof trusses were removed. This act caused extra pressure to the other parts of the ceiling and the wood started to deteriorate under the pressure. As a result the decorations started to fall off. The conservation of this monument started in 2001 and is still on the way.

Badgir Building during renovation

12- Underground Parking lot

The building of an 600 sq meter paking lot in 1966 to prevent the the further damage of car parking in front of the buildings.

Parking lot in the precess of building

Parking lot in the middle stage of building

Keeping and conserving cultural heritage is a task undertaken by Iranian Cultural Heritage Organization to maintain the cultural monuments. This task is so big and takes a lot of effort and money to be done, however, this is not the final goal of the organization. The main goal is geared toward keeping the cultural identity and familiarize the new generation of Iranians specially artists, craftsman and Industrial organizations to the essence of the rich and artistic creations of Iranian glorious past.

Mr. Ahmad Reza Heshmati
Translated by Farideh Taheri