The history of making toys in Iran dates back to ancient times. Small toys (like dolls) have been found in archeological excavations, that are light and delicate; they are assumed to be toys for children, although it was first thought to have been ritual statues. Native dolls with ethnic clothing found in different parts of Iran also indicate children’s need for toys from ancient times. However, toys in their present mechanical forms have a history of more or less 150 years in Iran and go back to the middle Qajar era, when we came in touch with foreign countries, and children’s toys were among the many items that we brought with us from Europe. Until then, toys made for children were home-made and handmade by adults.
Nasser al-Din Shah Qajar traveled to Europe three times and brought several toys, most of which were dolls. From a small book written by Taj al-Saltanah, one of Nasser al-Din Shah’s daughters, about the events of her life, we learn that as a child, like her other siblings, she had a variety of dolls and toys, all of which were her father’s souvenirs from European voyages. Taj-ol-Saltaneh writes that her father, who loves her so much, ordered that lots of toys are given to her.
Another historic source tells that children had toys in the court and in the harem of Nasser-eddin Shah. When the Qajar king ordered Amir Kabir’s assassination, for the sake of consoling his granddaughter, he would give her toys each time he saw her. But Amir Kabir’s little girl aggressively threw the toys aside and did not want to take a gift from her grandfather. We know that Ezzatodoleh, the wife of Amir Kabir, was the daughter of Nasser al-Din Shah.
Another of Nasser-eddin Shah’s grandsons was the son of Masoud Mirza Zel-al-Sultan. He also mentions in his notes a toy that was his grandfather’s souvenir from a trip to Europe. He writes that the toy was a giant elephant with long white ivory that tilted and walked like a real elephant. But ladies of the inner court had tuned the elephant so much that the gears broke and it did not move any more. Color pencils were also mentioned in the notes from that period. But, like other toys however, these color pencils were only meant for court and the children of the aristocrat class, and they were not accessible to common children, whose toys comprised of spinning tops, gilli damda (alak dolak), rattles and wooden horses. The girls also had dolls that the elders made from wood and cloth.
A point worth noting is that Iranian children did not yet know the ball at that time. There is no mention in any historical record that Iranian children played ball. Learning about the ball and play with it dates back to the last years of the Qajar dynasty. On the whole, before Nasser-eddin Shah’s travel to Europe and brought foreign toys to Iran, people were unfamiliar with these children’s play tools.
Toys belonging to an aged king
One of the wonders of our history one or two centuries ago is that no child could be found who was as fond of toys as Muzaffar al-Din Shah. The qajar king did not spare any amount of money in buying toys and playing with them. His relatives have recorded that one of this aged king’s main amusements was to play with toys, so much so that this drew taunting looks from insiders and outsiders. But the Qajar king did not care and did not want to give up his childish habit. God only knows how much toys Muzaffar-eddin Shah bought in his journeys abroad, while the government’s treasury was empty and the king started begging money from friends and also foreigners.
There is no use of thinking that Muzaffar-eddin Shah’s trips to Europe had any scientific or industrial achievements for the people of Iran. He just bought flowers and plants, and cardboard and mechanical dolls and brought them to Iran. What good were all those dolls, marbles and toys for the Qajar king? Such behavior came from his immature and childish desires, and his short-sightedness. Historical documents contain a coded telegram written by Muzaffar al-Din Shah to the Iranian ambassador to the Ottoman Empire (modern-day Turkey), asking him to send him two boxes of dolls. For instance, on his return from a trip to Europe, when he arrived at the Ottoman court and was visited by a number of the country’s high rank officials, one of the king’s servants would drop a toy on the floor every few minutes. With every spin and turn that the doll took the king would watch like a fascinated child. Meanwhile, the representatives of the ottoman government were watching him in bewilderment, and with open mouths!
In those days, two place in Tehran should be mentioned that were toy shops. One was in the market place of Ray City, which was the only place selling toys such as wooden monkeys, tops, and drumsticks with handles. The other shop would sell children’s toys that were imported from Europe, and which only the aristocrats could afford. this shop seems to have been called “Togo”, but we do not know on which street and which locality this shop was.
However, it took years for Iranian families to realize to what extent the right choice of toys could play a role in nurturing children’s minds and as a tool beyond entertainment. This awarness came when we started to modernize and learned about the basics of education and scientific training.
It is important to note that the toy industry in Iran has not yet become native oriented, and our children are still more familiar with foreign characters and heroes whose toys are easily accessible than with Iranian heroic and historical heroes and figures. In other words, the Iranian identity does not have any place in the country’s toy industry and in this regard no significant effort has been made, or supported. As a result, our children are becomeing more and more strangers with our own identity and falling into the arms of alien heroes.
Source: “Great Islamic Encyclopedia Center” website; The book “Childhood in Iran” written by Zahra Hatami (2016) and the book “Mozaffaruddin Shah, the elderly child” written by Ebrahim Safaei (2004).
