Azadi Tower turns 50 as a symbol of Iran's paradoxes
The Azadi Tower is celebrating its 50th anniversary as a paradoxical symbol of Iran's recent history and the scene of many of the major events that have shaken the Persian country in recent decades.
"The tower is Iran's national symbol," the building's director, Abas Azimi, told EFE news agency in his office.
A symbol, however, full of paradoxes and contradictions due to the reason for its construction, the historical events it hosted, the fate of its architect and its current state.
Inaugurated on 16 October 1971 as Shahyad (King's Memorial), the tower was meant to celebrate the Persian Empire and the monarchy, but became one of the main points of protest during the revolution that brought the Islamists to power in 1979.
Renamed Azadi Tower (freedom) in reference to the revolution, the site has also been the scene of protests against the Ayatollahs' regime, as was the case in 2009 with the Green Movement against the re-election of former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
On quieter days, the tower is a meeting place for young people, families and couples to chat and stroll around.
On a festive afternoon, a group of hip-looking young people take selfies with the 45-metre white tower in the background, oblivious to anniversaries, paradoxes and history.
A little further on, some women chat in the shade of a tree, while a couple stroll hand in hand through the large square with gardens and fountains that the building occupies.
Located in the west of the Iranian capital, the last Shah of Iran, Mohamad Reza Pahlevi, ordered its construction to commemorate the 2,500 years of the Persian Empire, founded by Cyrus the Great (529-559 BC).
In addition to the glorious Persian past, the building was to celebrate Iran's modernity and future.
To select the architect, the Shah organised a competition in 1966. The winner was the then 24-year-old Hosein Amanat, a recent graduate of Tehran University.
Amanat brought together the architecture of ancient Persia and the country's Islamic identity to imagine an inverted "y" of concrete covered by white marble with blue trimmings.
But the architect of the Freedom Tower had to leave the country because he belonged to one of the most persecuted religious minorities in the country, the Baha'is, after Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini came to power.
The Baha'i faith proposes the synthesis of the teachings of all religions, something considered heresy by Muslims.
Since his departure in 1980 to settle in Canada, Amanat has not set foot in Iran. However, he has had a successful career as an architect abroad, designing buildings such as the Baha'i World Centre in the Israeli city of Haifa.
Today the tower is the centre of national celebrations: Iranian missiles are displayed here every April on Army Day and in February the anniversary of the Islamic Revolution is commemorated.
Videos are projected on its white marble to celebrate religious holidays, Haemophilia Day and Autism Day. On Earth Hour, the lights are switched off and the tower goes dark.
The tower also houses a museum of works from different periods of Iran's past.
But after 50 years, the building has problems that Azimi attributes to the poor quality of the materials used in its construction.
"Seven years after its construction, damage began to appear in the tower because of the poor quality of the materials," Azimi said.
The official said that the restoration of the building is being studied and is expected to be carried out soon, although he did not give a date.
Amanat, however, in statements to the media, has lamented the lack of maintenance of the iconic building, one of the symbols of the country.
