Iran’s Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization has supported the opening of 14 private museums over the past two years, Mohammad Reza Kargar, the organization’s director general for museum affairs, said.
“Supporting private ownership of museums has been a priority of the organization,” Mehr News Agency quoted Kargar as saying, adding that the government of President Hassan Rouhani has tried to facilitate private ownership by introducing new policies.
The official said privately-owned museums cover a portion of their expenses via entrance fees, “but the government helps with upgrading facilities through subsidies.”
Kargar said the organization’s support goes beyond financial matters, adding that ICHHTO’s experts provide assistance to museum owners to improve the quality of their services.
“Artifact owners must first submit their collections to ICHHTO for analysis and review before they can be put on display,” he said.
Most private museums are in the cities of Tehran and Isfahan, but they are emerging in other cities as well.
