A look at the copper art of Yazd
he sound of the hammers of Yazdi coppersmiths in the Panje Ali Bazaar has resonated since the ninth century AH, but now this market has lost its past prosperity and the resounding sound of the hammer today is followed by the sadness of the market.
Panjeh Ali Bazaar, which thrives on the Yazd coppersmiths’ bazaar, is 600 years old. And the coppersmith market is no longer booming.
In the past, more than 60 copper shops were active in the Panje Ali Bazaar and created a variety of copper dish, but now only 45 of these 60 shops are active, of which only 15 are still working as coppersmiths.
Many activists have been making copper dish for more than 70 years, and coppersmithing is their main occupation.
Many coppersmith masters are no longer alive to train outstanding students like themselves, and large coppersmith shops are now adorned with Teflon, cast iron, spirit, and more.
In the distant past, the copper markets flourished because, in addition to the use of these vessels in houses, a significant portion of the bride’s dowry consisted of copper vessels.
As different goods entered the market and changed the way of life, copper dish gradually disappeared from old kitchens and were replaced by a variety of imported and foreign dish.
Some of the dishes went to the papers, and others were turned into home decorations by tasteful people and family artists.
Even now, copper dish are less practical, and these dish are mostly used to decorate kitchens and traditional parts of homes.
In recent years, copper raw materials have also become more expensive, which has made copper dish relatively expensive, so that the smallest size of a copper pot is now more than 35,000 tomans old.
In the past, copper vessels such as pots, trays, drains, sprinklers, samovars, sunflowers, teapots, etc. were made, but these days, copper dish are mostly made in decorative forms such as blue candle, curd, etc.
One of the market activists of Panj Ali Yazd said about his profession: I have been working in this profession for about 55 years and there was no news about the prosperity of the copper market until about two years ago, but the situation has improved.
Abolghasem Sayyah, stating that in the past most household items were made of copper, said: Today, this procedure has changed and is only used for cooking food and decorative items.
He said: In the past, it was customary to buy 100 kilograms of copper for each bride, but these days, crystal, porcelain, cast iron pots and Teflon pots, etc. have taken the place of copper pots.
Referring to the hard work of blacksmiths, Sayyah said: To convert a 10 kg sheet of copper into a copper vessel, 200,000 hammers must be inserted on it, and this requires high physical strength, while most other blacksmiths are old and worn out And few young people are working in this profession.
Although the copper and coppersmithing industry has a lot of hard work and income, it has a very good income, but young people now pay less attention to this field of art, which is also one of the unique handicrafts of Yazd province.