Malik National Museum of Iran
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| Country | Iran |
|---|---|
| Type | National library, Public library, National Museum |
| Location | Tehran |
| Collection | |
| Size |
19000 manuscripts 70000 books |
| Criteria for collection | manuscripts, Historical Artworks |
| Other information | |
| Director | Seyed Mohammad Mojtaba Hosseini |
| Website | http://www.malekmuseum.org |
19000 manuscripts
Malek National Museum and Library is a museum and national library in Tehran, Iran.Malek National Library and Museum Institution (MNLMI) is the first private museum of Iran and one of the six large libraries holding exquisite manuscripts. The MNLMI collection is a rich trove of the best manuscripts and Iranian historical artworks. The Institution is located in the historical precinct of “Bagh-e Melli” that is considered the cultural-historical center of Tehran. The MNLM visitors include a large number of university students and researchers, as well as tourists who enjoy its library and museum facilities.It is one of the biggest libraries of precious manuscripts in Iran, built by Hadji Hussein Agha Malek, at the time the richest man in Iran. He built it in a traditional Persian architecture style. One of the biggest contributors is Esat Malek Malek, Hadji Hussein Agha Malek's eldest daughter, who contributed to the museum's modernity. There are now screens with touch screens where you can do puzzles of the paintings. Now, an old woman from Shiraz also gave some of her belongings to the museum.
Haj Hossein Aqa Malek (1871-1972), the founder and donor of MNLM was born and died in Tehran. Both his grandfather and father were among the greatest merchants during the past two centuries in Iran. Haj Hossein’s father, Haj Mohammad Kazem Malek-ol-Tojjar, left him a large inheritance after his death, including a lot of properties and gardens in Tehran and Khorasan Province. The young Hossein while traveling to Mashhad, the capital of Khorasan Province at that time, to manage the family’s assets, got familiar with some Iranian-Islamic artworks, including a fine manuscript. This experience laid the ground for the establishment of an exquisite library and museum in coming decades. In 1908, Haj Hossein Aqa Malek founded a big library consist of both old manuscripts and printed books in Mashhad. Later on, he moved the library to his historical house located in the area of Tehran Grand Bazaar and thus provided free of charge access for the interested scholars. While collecting the manuscripts, Haj Malek bought a valuable collection of historical artworks that led into the establishment of the first private museum in the history of Iran. In 1937, he donated his invaluable library and museum to Astan-e Qods-e Razavi, as the greatest religious and cultural institution in Iran, with the aim to be visited and used by the public during his lifetime and after his death. He also donated many of his properties in Tehran and Khorasan for charity and public affairs so that he was known as the greatest donor of the contemporary history of Iran. Among his charitable acts are granting more than 2.5 million square meters of land to build houses for the teachers and the employees of the Ministries of Health and Post in Khorasan Province; donating Vakil-Abad’s 480-hectares garden to the people of Mashhad for the purpose of converting it to a public park; contributing the garden of Malek Palace in Shahr-e Ray for building a school; and endowing more than 60,000 hectares of properties including farmlands, gardens, and animal husbandries to Astan-e Qods-e Razavi. According to the MNLM deed of endowment, Haj Hossein Aqa Malek had stipulated that MNLM is a non-profit institution aimed at expanding the knowledge among the people. He has also mentioned that his collection would be available to both Iranian and foreign addressees.
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