Museum of the Holy Defence

Southeastern Iran


The Museum of the Holy Defence remembers the eight-year Iran–Iraq War through maps, gruesome photos, weapons, letters and intelligence documents from the war. There are brief summaries in English, but you'll need a guide to really interpret what you're seeing in any depth. That's not the case outside, however, where tanks and missile launchers overlook a mock battlefield complete with bunkers, minefield and pontoon-bridges across a waterway.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Southeastern Iran attractions

1. Yakkchal Moayedi

0.55 MILES

This Safavid-era ice house has preserved not just the stepped, conical adobe dome but also the tall mud walls that created winter shade over what would…

2. Kerman National Library

0.62 MILES

The hushed Kerman National Library has modestly billed itself as Iran's ‘greatest informatic research centre’, but for non-Farsi speakers it’s the…

3. Muzeh Sanati

0.86 MILES

The 'contemporary' section of this wide-ranging gallery is a selection of thought-provoking photographic and illustrative social commentary in the rear…

4. Bazar-e Zargaran

0.9 MILES

The gold bazaar is tucked away to the northeast of Ganj Ali Khan Sq. In the middle of its countless jewellery shops is a small square where you'll come…

5. Zurabkhane

0.9 MILES

A collection of ancient coins, displayed in a half-dark domed chamber, might be of interest to numismatists but at foreigner prices it seems overpriced …

6. Bazar-e Mesgari Shomali

0.92 MILES

As you walk east into the Bazar-e Sartasari from Tohid Sq, turn left at the first 12-sided charsoq (junction) to find shops selling shiny copper-plated…

7. Masjed-e Ganj Ali Khan

0.93 MILES

With an entrance hidden away in the northeastern corner of Ganj Ali Khan Sq, this tiny but lavishly decorated mosque was once the private place of worship…

8. Hammam Museum

0.96 MILES

This historic bathhouse is now a museum in which wax dummies illustrate the workings of a traditional hammam. Signage is a little garbled ('AD' dates…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "iran/southeastern-iran/kerman/attractions/museum-of-the-holy-defence/a/poi-sig/488242/361023",
      "destination": "Southeastern-Iran",
      "continent": "Middle-East",
      "country": "Iran",
      "region": "Southeastern-Iran",
      "position": "superzone"
    }