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How a culture appears under the action of a museum

Dr . Damon Monzavi .Directing Manager of Gem stones museum of Darya-e -Noor kish Island ,Persian Gulf. Iran D_MONZAVI@ICOM.IR

INTRODUCTION

Although investigation shows; at least using of gemstones in Iran refer to 7000 years ago, many historic mines with the old of 5000 years and 114 ancient books about the stones and gems by the Iranian scientists that many of them published 600 years before first mineralogy book of the world , Unfortunately by passing time and the wars that had happened in Persia this science and art is now forgotten and now just so limited Iranian people known about the gemstones, because of that there is not a good market about the Gems as same as carpet ,caviar, pistachio, saffron , despite the fact that Iran is among the 10 top deposits of semiprecious stones in the world, nobody did not use these virgin lands . 16 years ago an industrial company decide to inter these art and industry (from a to z, optimizing to design) to Iranian. But how it would be possible? The answer of this question was a museum, a museum that can make the culture ,the culture of knowing the real value of the stones the value that can help the economy of Iran and can create many jobs in this fields.

BEGINNING OF A MUSEUME AND ITS ACTIVITIES

The gems & stones museum start collecting the objects from all over the world during these 14 years and started its duty 4 years ago by expanded advertisement to inform people about the stones . But how we make this culture through a museum?

1.workshop & classes -

dispose of 150 public workshop and classes, Simple work shop and useful classes in our museum had been designed for the visitors to learn and experiment the new things and joy their time because when they come out from the classes, they will be satisfied with the time that they had spent in the museum , time is the most important thing so the classes includes many different branches according to which field people are interested in ,by this workshop we can attract more people and they will come to the museum many times to participate in classes and workshops.

2.publication & Documentation

Our manner is story telling documentations. Information bombardment by story-telling posters full of interesting, mysterious, discovery of Iranian scientists victories in battles, deposits of gems and imperial jewelry stories. Stories of Persian heritage make them follow for next posters , something that they looking to regain it, although the posters is just 2 % of the museum but it has one of the most attractive part of the museum it designed from easy to hard narrating story that can excite people from their brilliant past so they will follow the posters with interest but the most interesting poster is time line history of the beads and every one ask for a copy of it so we put some chairs near the posters during the time people get tired they can also read the articles. Through these posters we communicate with people and we can learn them many things with interest. there are many ancient book about gems and stones by Iranian we published the abstract of them inside a catalog and we sell many new books in this case but the interesting thing is that people all the time ask copy of ancient book because they trust their scientists and like to know more about their past so we are publishing edited and suitable book in this case. But about the new generation books we made them briefly in a catalog and also mentioning the guide book for buying items.

3.Marketing & Selling Department

One of the most important section of our museum is the selling section because our goal at least end to the marketing of gems and stones. In Iran as same as many country Joy most of the times means shopping ,watching TV going to restaurant and … so we invite people to have joy trough of our stores we inform them how to buy and why ? The differences here is that the customer did not know anything about the product and also they don't know which product is suitable to their needs so the guide book and publication is necessary. we not only advertise a product but also product a culture, the culture that is beneficial for us and also for the market and jobless region so we start to educate people who are interested in involve in this busyness so after 4 years many shop had opened by us all over the Iran .there are also many workshop related to design and fashion that we people can participate in it and fill joy of creation .

3.Adevertising, Radio, television& newspaper

In the last decades advertising is very important and the museum did not have the media converge that they have really deserve. So we think how we can be in network all the time? It would be possible if you think as a reporter we try to do something new some thing exactly good and suitable for the media, something that excite people so we advertise our cultural action and events with the good and sharp words that influence on people .All the time we have something new to send and invite to the list of reporters an journalist that we have collect during these years, also we search for the young reporters that they look for something new we invite them as a special guest to our museum and change them to our visitors .

.we make some educational program for radio in the morning and night program ,the most popular time of the radio , also the program is educational but at the end of it they will mentioned the name of gems museum so people come to us for more information .

But in the other hand we participate in many exhibitions and cultural events and we show some of our masterpieces to advertise our museum . Our cultural action is exactly according to the needs of people and their interest so automatically by mouth to mouth advertising we will be in media again. In kish island in the arrival entrance of airport we make a small museum so people at the beginning will be familiar with us thus we put our catalog in hotels and tourist information the catalog that each months we renew them according the needs and interest of people.

4.Children ,students and young generation

Iran is a young country so The most important investment for our museum is children and young population, the population that are not familiar with the museum and think museums are boring places but how we can keep up the interest among the young generation? The visitors that we want them come back again not only alone but also with their family and their friends we want to excite the filling of relationship with the collections and young generation ,and when we did that we can have the relation with families because the family is the most important unit of the society . we ask them to participate in our events rather than careless watching we let them fill the art and science something extra ordinary through their sense . we invite the student in not crowded time, feeling like their own class and filling of safety so his mind will absorb more things than crowded times . They should fill of be free instead of museum is some place that you should be quiet and just listening then we ask children to work with the educational machinery so they will have the feeling that they are some attraction of museum exactly when people take photo from them they think they have some talent that is respected by others .In this section we had put some automatic machinery near the table they are working with it the machine that in higher educational they will be learn it but but children thinks that they can also work with that machine and they will have the self -confidence filling till university that I had work with it before so he will learn it with interest. when they came back to their family they will share this joy with others and ask them to come with us again to the museum to let them know with the filling he or she had it before inside the museum it is the best advertising and investment trough the families we respect to children excitement and let them be free.

. 5.Gemstones Society

Gem stone society designed to join all the people with special interest or expertise in different fields and each person mentioned what skill he has or what he can do from 9 to 99 years old ,it is free of charge and we send information to our member according to their interest, they also become familiar with each other, Most of the member will be satisfied of their work according to their ability and in the future the gemstone society will be publish as a yellow page of gem and stones. Because it is free of charge it will be a communication center for all people who are interested in. Now it has more than 5000 members so it will be the place that people can cover the needs of other people in some field that museum cannot cover that need .

7.Regional activities and block busters

By Traveling Museum we have more Audiences and we can present the object exactly related to their lands We offered Iranian people in different regions an opportunity to experience the filing of their past heritage that they would never dreams someday they were so educated in this field and remind them that they have the chance to regain this value again,these brilliants deposits exist in their lands and they can easily access to them,.they are so happy because Our regional museum provide a valuable identity for that location and We see inside their eyes how excited they are . interesting thing is that in our regional museum most of the visitors came to our museum more than one time and effect of these events are more than main museum ,we heard that still people in those regions speak about our museum and most of the time they ask us when you came back again ? People are proud of their self so they come and come again to enjoy their time and ask other citizen to share in this joy with them. We learned them how they can have their own job and how easily it can be possible. we make them interested in this field. we introduce them new ideas the ideas that can change their life in these regional events by interested visitors we discover many new minds on that regions that include absorbing the media and local government.

9.Library

Many books related to stones, gems ,jewelry cutting and related topic had collected from all over the world according to interest of people many available Persian documentations also had been published as a posters or timeline so researcher can use them although many simple guide book had been published for the visitors.

10.Grouping of visitors and the environment

According to our research about the visitors for more influence we should divide the visitors .Each groups of visitors have their own information needs:

Adults-ordinary , professionals and educated, religious and traditional people

When our personnel speak with each category we should create the atmosphere of enjoyment the atmosphere that people are interested in, it this encourage visitors to seek for more information. we should receive the positive audience response By presenting the information that they would like to hear from us.

Children -boys, girls and youth

We speak with girls about romantic stories ,fictions , the history of gems , goddess and angel that someday related to stones but about boys we present about exciting things as same as wars and battles long journeys ,heroes and legends for youth we speak about industries , the income of gems, deposits and mines and our historical discovery ,so we speak with each groups by their language .Also for this category we organize many competition about painting, collecting information, designing and we give to each participants educational product or gem stones as the gift by this manner we encourage this category also some we see some information or designed by children that everybody surprised how a children could be so smart

Environment

Each gemstone in the museum present in three ways rough material cut and polished from one side and the products that can produce by that stone and information about each gems had mentioned on it so they can easily learn all about the gems .in industry section we show the line of cutting and finishing machines so visitors can see the process of producing productions from the stones

Each two or three months we make some changes inside the museum it has. many benefitsThe visitors all the time thinks we show something new because maybe in their first visit something remain hidden from their eyes and now they see it

Conclusion

But now, by the act of gemstones museums by introducing the gems to people and make a new culture , more than 500.000 people had visited the gemstones museum and about 1 .000.000 people are familiar with gemstones museum and recently the industry and business of gems is spreading everywhere and many people decide to invest in this field.

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