Ali Mozaffari
Biographic Data
| ID | 669016 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Ali Mozaffari |
| GIVEN NAMES | Ali |
| FAMILY NAME | Mozaffari |
| SIGNATURE | MOZAFFARI A |
| AFFILIATIONS | Deakin University |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-7139-1534 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 15 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 23 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 13 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 2 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2013 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
Modalities of heritage–border relations in a multipolar world order
This paper examines cultural heritage and border relations as co-constitutive processes significant in a shifting multipolar world order. We propose a scalar, conceptual approach and analyse three modalities of heritage–border relations: territorial revanchism, heritage alliances, and civilisational imaginaries. Our argument combines a clear conceptual frame with case studies from West Asia: tangible heritage (the Yukhari Govhar Agha Mosque in Az…
Migrant heritage, domesticity, and transnational prefabrication
The Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Scheme (Snowy Hydro) was a frontier for technological advancement, transnational expertise, and migrant labour from 1949 to 1974. This article offers a discussion of the Snowy Hydro project and its representation as part of the ‘Immigrant Networks’ exhibition held in Melbourne in 2022–23. As a multidisciplinary dialogue, it brings together perspectives from Construction History, Heritage Studies, and Architectur…
Heritage conservation and civilisational competition in the South Caucasus
This paper explores the role of cultural heritage in shaping competing civilisational identities amid the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict. As its case studies, it focuses on the relatively recent restorations of two significant mosques, the Blue Mosque in Yerevan (capital of Armenia) and the Govhar Agha Mosque in Shusha (capital of Nagorno-Karabakh in Azerbaijan), respectively. Referring to primary references in Persian, Azerbaijani, Turkish, Armenia…
Heritage diplomacy and soft power competition between Iran and Turkey
In this paper, we examine the use of intangible cultural heritage as a vehicle for soft power in the service of geostrategic competitions between Iran and Turkey, two regional powers in West Asia. We focus on two significant trans-regional instances of intangible cultural heritage relevant to both countries: the mystic poet Rumi and the New Year’s celebration of Nowruz. We draw on theories in political science and cultrual heritage as well as a h…
In search of continuity with the past
Architecture is the meeting point of development, culture, and the environment. Development usually challenges traditions and leads to environmental and cultural concerns. In the 1970s public architecture in Iran played a significant role in re-imagining a national cultural landscape. The paper examines the Beaux Arts-trained architect Houshang Seyhoun’s (1964–68) design for the reconstructed mausoleum of Ferdowsi, the Iranian national poet. The …
Iran’s soft power in Azerbaijan
This article explores Iran’s soft power appeal in Azerbaijan following Azerbaijan’s independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. It first reviews the state of the field and situates Iran’s overall soft power strategies in relation to that context and then focuses on the relationship between Iran and post-independence Azerbaijan. Drawing on a rich array of material, including the latest publications in Persian, the article explores Tehran’s exercis…
Heritage and territorial disputes in the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict
On 27 September 2020, Azerbaijan went to war with Armenia on a scale not seen since the ceasefire of 1994. The conflict ended in another ceasefire on 10 November 2020, however, in addition to the theatre of war, the conflict has been prosecuted and continues to be fought post-ceasefire, through claims to cultural heritage which are employed in international organisations to substantiate the legitimacy of territorial claims. In this paper, we spec…
Screening Heritage
This paper probes the process of heritage production in documentary films with a specific focus on the documentary film Taq Kasra Wonder of Architecture (Akbarzadeh, Pejman. 2018. Taq Kasra Wonder of Architecture. Amsterdam: Persian Dutch Network. www.taqkasra.com.), which tells the story of the pre-Islamic Persian/Iranian historical site of Taq Kasra (the Arch of Ctesiphon), presently located in Iraq. The paper situates the film within a broader…
Heritage Movements in Asia
Heritage Contests
While contests and conflicts are well recognized in heritage research, analysis of the specific circumstances and dilemmas that individuals and groups face when pursuing heritage goals and partaking in heritage contests can benefit from further methodological work. This paper presents a case and method for incorporating concepts from an emerging interactionist perspective on social movements into heritage research in order to better conceptualize…
Picturing Pasargadae
For Graham Seal This paper probes the relationship between visual representations and visitation practices at Pasargadae, a UNESCO World Heritage site in southern Iran. Presenting a systematic analysis of publicly available online images of Pasargadae, the paper examines the complex relationship between the place and its visual representations. Through analysis, the paper elaborates on a sense of intimacy that, while grounding Pasargadae, is also…
World Heritage in Iran
The heritage 'NGO
This paper examines the activities of a group of heritage enthusiasts in Iran. Grass roots heritage activism is a relatively recent phenomenon that appeared in Iran since the late 1990s. They are increasingly operating collectively as cultural or heritage NGOs. They have diverse socio-economic origins and political views. However, as this paper argues, they share a common ground in their activities; one that maintains an ambivalent and critical r…
Forming National Identity in Iran
Modern Iran is a country with two significant but competing discourses of national identity, one stemming from ancient pre-Islamic customs and mythology, the other from Islamic Shi’i practices and beliefs. At one time co-existing and often mutually reinforcing, in more modern times they have been appropriated by intellectuals and the state who have drawn upon their narratives and traditions to support and authenticate their ideologies. The result…
Islamism and Iran's Islamic Period Museum
The Islamic Period Museum of Iran was established, almost 16 years after the Islamic Revolution, as an addition to the previous National Museum building – the Iran Bastan, or Ancient Iran Museum – in 1996. By examining the components of state Islamism, the space of the museum and key exhibits, this paper reveals the analogous relationship between the museum and state ideology. That relationship suggests that the museum embodies fundamental ambigu…
Heritage diplomacy and soft power competition between Iran and Turkey
In this paper, we examine the use of intangible cultural heritage as a vehicle for soft power in the service of geostrategic competitions between Iran and Turkey, two regional powers in West Asia. We focus on two significant trans-regional instances of intangible cultural heritage relevant to both countries: the mystic poet Rumi and the New Year’s celebration of Nowruz. We draw on theories in political science and cultrual heritage as well as a h…
Iran’s soft power in Azerbaijan
This article explores Iran’s soft power appeal in Azerbaijan following Azerbaijan’s independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. It first reviews the state of the field and situates Iran’s overall soft power strategies in relation to that context and then focuses on the relationship between Iran and post-independence Azerbaijan. Drawing on a rich array of material, including the latest publications in Persian, the article explores Tehran’s exercis…
The heritage 'NGO
This paper examines the activities of a group of heritage enthusiasts in Iran. Grass roots heritage activism is a relatively recent phenomenon that appeared in Iran since the late 1990s. They are increasingly operating collectively as cultural or heritage NGOs. They have diverse socio-economic origins and political views. However, as this paper argues, they share a common ground in their activities; one that maintains an ambivalent and critical r…
Heritage and territorial disputes in the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict
On 27 September 2020, Azerbaijan went to war with Armenia on a scale not seen since the ceasefire of 1994. The conflict ended in another ceasefire on 10 November 2020, however, in addition to the theatre of war, the conflict has been prosecuted and continues to be fought post-ceasefire, through claims to cultural heritage which are employed in international organisations to substantiate the legitimacy of territorial claims. In this paper, we spec…
Islamism and Iran's Islamic Period Museum
The Islamic Period Museum of Iran was established, almost 16 years after the Islamic Revolution, as an addition to the previous National Museum building – the Iran Bastan, or Ancient Iran Museum – in 1996. By examining the components of state Islamism, the space of the museum and key exhibits, this paper reveals the analogous relationship between the museum and state ideology. That relationship suggests that the museum embodies fundamental ambigu…
Migrant heritage, domesticity, and transnational prefabrication
The Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Scheme (Snowy Hydro) was a frontier for technological advancement, transnational expertise, and migrant labour from 1949 to 1974. This article offers a discussion of the Snowy Hydro project and its representation as part of the ‘Immigrant Networks’ exhibition held in Melbourne in 2022–23. As a multidisciplinary dialogue, it brings together perspectives from Construction History, Heritage Studies, and Architectur…
Heritage conservation and civilisational competition in the South Caucasus
This paper explores the role of cultural heritage in shaping competing civilisational identities amid the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict. As its case studies, it focuses on the relatively recent restorations of two significant mosques, the Blue Mosque in Yerevan (capital of Armenia) and the Govhar Agha Mosque in Shusha (capital of Nagorno-Karabakh in Azerbaijan), respectively. Referring to primary references in Persian, Azerbaijani, Turkish, Armenia…
Picturing Pasargadae
For Graham Seal This paper probes the relationship between visual representations and visitation practices at Pasargadae, a UNESCO World Heritage site in southern Iran. Presenting a systematic analysis of publicly available online images of Pasargadae, the paper examines the complex relationship between the place and its visual representations. Through analysis, the paper elaborates on a sense of intimacy that, while grounding Pasargadae, is also…
Islamism and Iran's Islamic Period Museum
The Islamic Period Museum of Iran was established, almost 16 years after the Islamic Revolution, as an addition to the previous National Museum building – the Iran Bastan, or Ancient Iran Museum – in 1996. By examining the components of state Islamism, the space of the museum and key exhibits, this paper reveals the analogous relationship between the museum and state ideology. That relationship suggests that the museum embodies fundamental ambigu…
Forming National Identity in Iran
Modern Iran is a country with two significant but competing discourses of national identity, one stemming from ancient pre-Islamic customs and mythology, the other from Islamic Shi’i practices and beliefs. At one time co-existing and often mutually reinforcing, in more modern times they have been appropriated by intellectuals and the state who have drawn upon their narratives and traditions to support and authenticate their ideologies. The result…
The heritage 'NGO
This paper examines the activities of a group of heritage enthusiasts in Iran. Grass roots heritage activism is a relatively recent phenomenon that appeared in Iran since the late 1990s. They are increasingly operating collectively as cultural or heritage NGOs. They have diverse socio-economic origins and political views. However, as this paper argues, they share a common ground in their activities; one that maintains an ambivalent and critical r…
World Heritage in Iran
Heritage Contests
While contests and conflicts are well recognized in heritage research, analysis of the specific circumstances and dilemmas that individuals and groups face when pursuing heritage goals and partaking in heritage contests can benefit from further methodological work. This paper presents a case and method for incorporating concepts from an emerging interactionist perspective on social movements into heritage research in order to better conceptualize…
Picturing Pasargadae
For Graham Seal This paper probes the relationship between visual representations and visitation practices at Pasargadae, a UNESCO World Heritage site in southern Iran. Presenting a systematic analysis of publicly available online images of Pasargadae, the paper examines the complex relationship between the place and its visual representations. Through analysis, the paper elaborates on a sense of intimacy that, while grounding Pasargadae, is also…
Heritage Movements in Asia
Screening Heritage
This paper probes the process of heritage production in documentary films with a specific focus on the documentary film Taq Kasra Wonder of Architecture (Akbarzadeh, Pejman. 2018. Taq Kasra Wonder of Architecture. Amsterdam: Persian Dutch Network. www.taqkasra.com.), which tells the story of the pre-Islamic Persian/Iranian historical site of Taq Kasra (the Arch of Ctesiphon), presently located in Iraq. The paper situates the film within a broader…
In search of continuity with the past
Architecture is the meeting point of development, culture, and the environment. Development usually challenges traditions and leads to environmental and cultural concerns. In the 1970s public architecture in Iran played a significant role in re-imagining a national cultural landscape. The paper examines the Beaux Arts-trained architect Houshang Seyhoun’s (1964–68) design for the reconstructed mausoleum of Ferdowsi, the Iranian national poet. The …
Iran’s soft power in Azerbaijan
This article explores Iran’s soft power appeal in Azerbaijan following Azerbaijan’s independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. It first reviews the state of the field and situates Iran’s overall soft power strategies in relation to that context and then focuses on the relationship between Iran and post-independence Azerbaijan. Drawing on a rich array of material, including the latest publications in Persian, the article explores Tehran’s exercis…
Heritage and territorial disputes in the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict
On 27 September 2020, Azerbaijan went to war with Armenia on a scale not seen since the ceasefire of 1994. The conflict ended in another ceasefire on 10 November 2020, however, in addition to the theatre of war, the conflict has been prosecuted and continues to be fought post-ceasefire, through claims to cultural heritage which are employed in international organisations to substantiate the legitimacy of territorial claims. In this paper, we spec…
Heritage diplomacy and soft power competition between Iran and Turkey
In this paper, we examine the use of intangible cultural heritage as a vehicle for soft power in the service of geostrategic competitions between Iran and Turkey, two regional powers in West Asia. We focus on two significant trans-regional instances of intangible cultural heritage relevant to both countries: the mystic poet Rumi and the New Year’s celebration of Nowruz. We draw on theories in political science and cultrual heritage as well as a h…
Heritage conservation and civilisational competition in the South Caucasus
This paper explores the role of cultural heritage in shaping competing civilisational identities amid the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict. As its case studies, it focuses on the relatively recent restorations of two significant mosques, the Blue Mosque in Yerevan (capital of Armenia) and the Govhar Agha Mosque in Shusha (capital of Nagorno-Karabakh in Azerbaijan), respectively. Referring to primary references in Persian, Azerbaijani, Turkish, Armenia…
Modalities of heritage–border relations in a multipolar world order
This paper examines cultural heritage and border relations as co-constitutive processes significant in a shifting multipolar world order. We propose a scalar, conceptual approach and analyse three modalities of heritage–border relations: territorial revanchism, heritage alliances, and civilisational imaginaries. Our argument combines a clear conceptual frame with case studies from West Asia: tangible heritage (the Yukhari Govhar Agha Mosque in Az…
Migrant heritage, domesticity, and transnational prefabrication
The Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Scheme (Snowy Hydro) was a frontier for technological advancement, transnational expertise, and migrant labour from 1949 to 1974. This article offers a discussion of the Snowy Hydro project and its representation as part of the ‘Immigrant Networks’ exhibition held in Melbourne in 2022–23. As a multidisciplinary dialogue, it brings together perspectives from Construction History, Heritage Studies, and Architectur…
Cultural Heritage Management and Preservation (10 works) · History (10 works) · Political science (10 works) · Archaeology (9 works) · Law (9 works) · Politics (9 works) · Aesthetics (7 works) · Art (7 works) · Sociology (7 works) · Archaeological Research and Protection (6 works)