On the picture H.E. Ambassador Dr Alireza Jahangiri and wife Maryam, together with Ambassador of the Republic of India H.E. J. S. Mukul, his wife Mita and a friend.
By Mr. Roy Lie a Tjam.
On Saturday, 12 September, H.E. Dr. Alireza Jahangiri, Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and his wife, Maray Jahangiri, graciously opened their mansion and estate grounds, for the second time, to a curious and appreciative public.
Since 1959, landgoed (estate) “De Wiltzangk te Wassenaar”, a listed heritage property, has served as the official residence for Iranian Ambassadors and their families. This past weekend, the Ambassador’s family celebrated the Netherlands’ 29th National Open Monumentendag 2015 with the local community. “De Wiltzangk”, the name given to the estate, was inspired by the title of poem by Joost van den Vondel, a famous 17th Century Dutch poet and playwright.
For a photo-album on Iranian Monumentendag 2015, please click here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/121611753@N07/albums/72157658558177190
https://youtu.be/E8ydr_XsxhQ
Santur and Daf
In honor of the occasion, Ambassador Jahangiri and his wife, arranged to have their home temporarily transformed into an Iranian cultural center for the day. Upon arrival, guests admired a vintage automobile collection parked in front of the residence courtesy of Tehran Trading Mirjavanmanrd at the end of a long tree lined driveway, before being welcomed outdoors with a selection of traditional warm beverages, including Cardamon tea served in open “special event” tents. Artemis Perzisch Restaurant, located on the Fredrikstraat in The Haag, catered the traditional Persian grill buffet, which was served to invited guests and visitors alike.
Inside the residence, the public viewed a book collection display of lavishly illustrated Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyám.
Persian carpet specialists from TTM Wonen, in Leidschendam, organized a carpet exhibition throughout the stately ground floor rooms of the residence.
The reading table featured some twenty English translations of Persian books from the University of Leiden Press “Iranian Studies Series”, as well as other books on tourism, which were available for perusing.
An Iranian expatriate, local travel expert, and owner of Vievana, a trusted local travel agency specializing in guided group and individual tour programs to Iran, responded to visitors’ questions about the country. Visitors were interested in opportunities to visit the country’s historic cities of Esfahan, Qom and Kermanshah as well as the country’s many other UNESCO World Heritage cultural sites such as the Meidan Eman in Esfahan.
The conservatory in De Wiltzangk was used as a photography, art and craft gallery. Artisan Maryam Gholamhoseini, an Iranian silver and coppersmith, was among the artisans selected to exhibit work.
The exhibition continued outside onto the terrace, where enchanting paintings by the Iranian artist “Fereshteh Salehi”, were displayed together with paintings by a Dutch artist.
The Ambassador’s cultural program for his “Monument Day” open house concluded with a musical program performed by a two man musical ensemble playing a selection of traditional Persian music on the Santur and Daf.
The design of De Wiltzangk was commissioned by O.F. Weise. He chose the Rotterdam architect, P. Musly, to design the turn of the century “arts and crafts” English country home for his client, Mr. Samuel van den Bergh, founder of Unilever.
It was built on a portion of the Backershagen Estate exactly 100 years ago, in 1915 and contributed to the early development of Wassenaar as a villadorp (estate village). Over the years, the mansion has been extended and the park-like grounds, laid out in the architectural landscape style, designed by the Dutch landscape architect Dirk Frederik Tersteeg, have been enhanced.
Mr. Sidney van den Bergh, director of Unilever and former Minister of Defense, commissioned a conservatory to be constructed on the southwest side of the family’s estate, in 1925. Special guests and members of the public appreciated the rare opportunity to admire the traditional fireplace in De Wiltzangk’s “Great Room,” decorated with a unique collection of Delft blue tiles from the 17th and 18th Centuries.
Since 1915, many notable people have been associated with De Wiltzangk. In the early 40s, the estate, together with its valuable contents, were confiscated by Nazi troops.
The building and grounds were briefly used by General Friedrich Christiansen, the Supreme Commander of the Wehrmacht in the Netherlands.
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According to officials, over 1,000,000 people attended the 5,000 properties opened for the national “Open Monumentendag 2015,” a number, which far exceeded that of 2014.
Mr. Jan Hoekema, the Mayor of Wassenaar, other representatives of the Wassenaar municipality, diplomats, members of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Iranian diaspora and scores of other visitors and guests, were among the many who were grateful for Ambassador Jahangiri’s hospitality in providing everyone with the unique opportunity of visiting “De Wiltzangk”—his stately and historic residence.
