Museum of Anthropology (Abyaz Palace)
At the end of the reign of Naser al-Din Shah, Sultan Abdul Hamid, the Ottoman king, sent some excellent and precious furniture, including some Louis XVI steel sofas, velvet curtains, two mirrors with frames and bases, beautiful bronze sculptures and a few pieces of Turkish woven carpets as gifts to the king of Iran. Because at that time almost all palaces and royal halls were filled and decorated with many paintings and furniture and there was no place left to put the gifts of the Ottoman sultan, Naser al-Din Shah decided to build a new palace to house the Sultan's gifts in the southwest corner of the Golestan area, which was the former location of Kolah Ferangi or Burj Agha Mohammad Khani. Although it is certain that Abyaz Palace was built at the end of Naser al-Din Shah's reign, the exact date of its construction is not known, but an inscription on one of the tiles installed in the building reads: This building is the work of Mehdi and Sadegh Kashi, 1890 AD". It can be assumed that the construction date of the palace itself was also around this year. Dr. Fourieh, a special physician of the Qajar court who was in Iran between 1888 and 1891 AD, wrote in his book: "And a mansion that was recently built in the architectural style of Louis XVI on the west side …" partially confirms this matter. It has been said that the plan of the new palace was drawn by Naser al-Din Shah himself and the dimensions of the great hall were set according to the width and length of the Sultan's largest carpet.
However, when the construction of the building was finished, due to the white color of the facade of the building, which was plastered in the style of the eighteenth century European buildings, and the stairs and plaster mouldings of the palace hall were also made of white marble, it was called "Qasr Abyaz" or White Palace.
After the completion of the building, Naser al-Din Shah ordered to cover the opposite hall floor with a large carpet of the Ottoman sultan, and decorated the mentioned hall with some large oil paintings of the kings and queens of various European countries that were given to the Shah of Iran during his travels in Europe or later, and in this way it turned into a magnificent hall which was suitable for the reception of kings and was named "Abdul Hamid Hall". From the very beginning, Abyaz Palace was designated as the workplace of the Prime Ministers and prime Ministers of the later governments also placed their seat of government in this palace, and the meetings of the Council of Ministers were also held in the "Sultan Abdul Hamid" hall.
Around 1953 AD, when the office of prime minister moved from this place to Kakh Street, Abyaz Palace was dedicated to the country's fine arts, and some repairs were made in it, and it became the place for holding temporary exhibitions and the center of activities of the General Directorate of Museums and Popular Culture. In 1957 some exhibitions were held in this museum and the first one was Women's Clothing of Iran exhibition. After the establishment of the Ministry of Culture and Arts and the transfer of the above office to its new location, and at the same time the coronation of Pahlavi II in 1977 AD, major changes and repairs were made in the western facade and the rooms of the lower floors of the palace according to the original style of the building to completely prevent the destruction of the building due to the humidity and old age of it. In 1967, this building was dedicated to the Museum of Anthropology.
The establishment of the Museum of Anthropology dates back to the early years of the Pahlavi era. The order to establish this museum was issued by Reza Shah Pahlavi in 1935 AD. After the issuance of this decree, experts were sent to all parts of the country to collect the objects and necessities of life of the people in all cities, villages and different ethnic groups. In September 1937, after a lot of efforts, this museum was opened in a building located on Bo Ali Street, which is now the place of Iran National Artifacts and Elites Association.
Anthropology Museum is one of the oldest and richest anthropology museums in the country.
This museum consists of two floors and various sections:
The ground floor includes the administrative department and exhibition halls.
On the second floor, in addition to the clothes of different regions of Iran, the clothing of Qajar men and women and other items are exposed to the visitors.