Shapour High School Museum Keeps Alive the Memories of Generations of Its Alumni

The idea of establishing a museum for Shapour High School in Shiraz (Shaaeiyeh or Abuzar) was submitted to the Shiraz City Council in January 2022 (Dey 1400). The then council chairman's approval and referral of the resolution to the mayor of the old district was the first step toward realizing this idea. Now, alongside the Zandieh complex project, the question arises: Will the memories and legacy of one of Shiraz's historic schools finally find their rightful place in the city's cultural memory?

The establishment of the Shapur High School Museum in Shiraz is an idea to preserve a part of the contemporary history of Shiraz

The idea of establishing the museum of Shapur High School in Shiraz (Shuaiyeh or Abu Dhar) was presented to the Islamic Council of Shiraz in January 1400. The approval of the head of the council at the time and the referral of that resolution to the old mayor Baft was the first step in the realization of this idea. Now, at the same time as the performance of the Zandiye collection, the question arises whether the memories and heritage of one of the historical schools of Shiraz will finally find its rightful place in the cultural memory of the city?

After the news of the proposal to implement the project (every school a museum) in Fars schools, which was proposed by the head of cultural heritage of Shiraz, I remembered the idea and plan of establishing the museum of Shapur High School (Shuaiyeh/Abuzar), a plan based on which it was decided to allocate a part to the high school museum in the Zandiye complex, which will be established on the high school grounds.

Now that the Honorable Director General of Fars Cultural Heritage has spoken about the readiness to design and equip school museums in the cities of the province, I took the opportunity to recall that plan.

Hearing such news reminded me more than a cultural news of an idea that was formed years ago, from a personal memory and belonging to Shiraz and Abu Dhar High School.

The high school that was once called Shuaiyeh was later called Shahpur and after the revolution Abu Dhar.

A complex that was not just an educational building. It was an environment that contained a part of the history of modern education in Shiraz and the memories of several generations of students and teachers of this city.

I also spent part of my teenage years in the same school. Maybe it was for this reason that after the destruction of the high school building, the memory of it was not considered finished for me.

After the destruction of Abu Dhar High School, a proposal was made to hold a gathering of the school's graduates and teachers on the first Friday of October every year, which has continued until today, and with the beginning of October, a group of teachers, assistant professors and students of this high school review their memories.

In reviewing those names, we reach the elders who; Dr. Khodadost and Master Saber (painter with style) Jamshid Ismailkhani, Dr. Mohammad Taqi Mir, Ibrahim Golestan, Professor Parham, Fereydoun Tolli, Hassan Naheed, etc. are some of the notables who have excelled in various fields such as medicine, art, sports, etc.

By reviewing these names, we are not only faced with a list of graduates of a school; We are facing a part of the cultural and social history of Shiraz.

It was from this place that the idea of establishing the "Museum of Shuaiyeh-Shahpur-Abuzar High School" was formed.

In January 1400, a proposal for the establishment of this museum was submitted to the Shiraz Islamic Council, with the aim of collecting historical documents, pictures, sports trophies, school memorabilia, and biographies of well-known figures associated with this school in a collection and preserving it for future generations.

And on March 8, 1400, a letter signed by Mr. Mehdi Taheri, the head of the Shiraz Islamic Council at the time, was issued to the municipality of Baft al-Qadim, agreeing to the construction of the Shuaiyeh-Shahpur-Abuzar High School Museum.

This letter was not just an administrative correspondence for me; It was a confirmation that the memory of a school can be part of a city's identity.

Now, four years after that proposal, the news of the project "Every school is a museum" has been published in Fars. This plan is remarkable from the point of view that the school goes beyond a purely educational space and turns it into a place for students to encounter history, identity and cultural heritage.

In my opinion, this view is exactly the point where the idea of Shuaiyeh-Shahpur-Abuzar High School Museum started many years ago, and I hope that with the responsible follow-up and supervision of the relevant managers, the construction of the Shapur High School Museum will be put into action along with the completion of the Zandiye collection.