The treasure trove of art worth billions 'hidden' in Tehran

BBC News

17-02-2025

It has been dubbed one of the world's rarest treasure troves of art but few people outside its host country know about it.For decades, masterpieces by the likes of Pablo Picasso, Vincent Van Gogh, Andy Warhol and Jackson Pollock have been kept in the basement of a museum in Iran's capital Tehran, shrouded in mystery.According to estimates in 2018, the collection is worth as much as $3bn.Only a small portion of the work has been exhibited since the 1979 Iranian Revolution but in recent years, the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art has been showcasing some of its most captivating pieces.
The Eye to Eye exhibition at the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art, which opened in October 2024, was extended twice due to overwhelming public demand, running until January 2025. The display was widely regarded as one of the most significant exhibitions in the history of the museum, and it also became its most visited. The showcase featured more than 15 works unveiled for the first time, including a sculpture by Jean Dubuffet - marking its first-ever appearance in an Iranian exhibition.
From abstract expressionism to pop art, the collection at the museum serves as a time capsule of pivotal artistic movements.Among the artwork is Warhol's portrait of Farah Pahlavi - Iran's last queen - a rare piece blending his pop art flair with Iranian cultural history.Elsewhere, Francis Bacon's work called Two Figures Lying on a Bed with Attendants shows figures appearing to spy on two naked men lying on a bed.On the opposite wall in the basement of the museum, a portrait of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran, is on display in juxtaposition.
The museum was built in 1977 under the patronage of Pahlavi, the exiled widow of the last Shah of Iran who was overthrown during the revolution.Pahlavi was a passionate art advocate and her cousin, architect Kamran Diba, designed the museum.It was established to introduce modern art to Iranians and to bridge Iran closer to the international art scene.
The museum soon became home to a stunning array of works by luminaries including Picasso, Warhol and Salvador Dali, alongside pieces by leading Iranian modernists, and quickly established itself as a beacon of cultural exchange and artistic ambition.But then came the 1979 revolution. Iran became an Islamic republic as the monarchy was overthrown and clerics assumed political control under Ayatollah Khomeini. Many artworks were deemed inappropriate for public display because of nudity, religious sensitivities or political implications.
Pierre-Auguste Renoir's Gabrielle with Open Blouse was deemed too scandalous. And Warhol's portrait of the former queen of Iran was too political. In fact, Pahlavi's portrait was vandalised and torn apart with a knife during the revolutionary turmoil.After the revolution, many of the artworks were locked away, collecting dust in a basement that became the stuff of art world legend.
It was only in the late 1990s that the museum reclaimed its cultural significance during the reformist presidency of Mohammad Khatami.Suddenly the world remembered what it had been missing. Art lovers could not believe their eyes. Van Gogh, Dali, even Monet - all in Tehran.Some pieces were loaned to major exhibitions in Europe and the United States, briefly reconnecting the collection with the global art world.Hamid Keshmirshekan, an art historian based in London, has studied the collection and calls it "one of the rarest treasure troves of modern art outside the West".
The collection includes Henry's Moore's Reclining Figure series - an iconic piece by one of Britain's most celebrated sculptors - and Jackson Pollock's Mural on Indian Red Ground, a vibrant example of the American's painting technique pulsing with energy and emotion.Picasso's The Painter and His Model - his largest canvas from 1927 - also features, a strong example of his abstract works from the post-cubism period.And there is Van Gogh's At Eternity's Gate - one of the very rare survivals of his first printmaking campaign during which he produced six lithographs in November 1882.
But for art lovers in Britain, the collection is out of reach. The UK Foreign Office advises against all travel to Iran and says British and British-Iranian dual nationals are at significant risk of arrest, questioning or detention. Having a British passport or connections to the UK can be reason enough for detention by the Iranian authorities, it says.Challenges remain for the museum which operates under a tight budget. Shifting political priorities mean that it often functions more as a cultural hub than a traditional museum.Yet it continues to be a remarkable institution - an unlikely guardian of modern art masterpieces in the heart of Tehran.