Every year at the start of spring, I draw out all of my favorite tableware to commemorate the Persian New Year. This vacation, called Nowruz, goes back over 3,000 years to ancient Persia and stems from Zoroastrianism, one of the world’s oldest religious beliefs, rooted in a respect for nature and its elements. Nowruz starts on the day of the vernal equinox, the very first day of spring, with celebrations continuing for 13 days. On the 13th day, to ward off bad luck from the number 13, the holiday ends with a huge outside picnic.
What I like most about Nowruz is that it links us to an ancient time and location that would otherwise feel a bit abstract. We’re far eliminated from how people lived countless years earlier, but commemorating Nowruz is a concrete link to the past. It’s likewise a really visual and visual vacation that uses a great deal of chance for imagination and putting your own artful spin on the custom.
We create a tablescape called the “haft-sin,” which implies the “7 S’s” in Persian, named for the seven products starting with the letter “S” that go on the table. Each item carries a symbolic meaning that we hope to employ for the brand-new year.
Garlic (“seer”)– health, defense from evil
Apple (“seeb”)– beauty, vigor
Sumac (“somagh”)– the success of light over darkness
Vinegar (“serkeh”)– knowledge, perseverance
Sprouts (“sabzeh”)– rebirth, renewal
Wheat germ pudding (“samanu”)– abundance, success
Dried oleaster (“senjed”)– love, love
In addition to the 7 S’s, there are some optional items– call them additional credit for generating more good things for the year– that can be added to the spread. I always have candle lights, which symbolize knowledge; a mirror to represent reflection and self-awareness; and my individual favorite: an orange floating in water, which represents the earth drifting in area and signifies harmony.
Here’s a look at how I developed my haft-sin this year.
Photography by Nicole Najafi.
Above: I would explain my haft-sin visual as “modernist Marie Antoinette.” I love the old-world decadence of vintage silver and crystal however with some modernist restraint: one apple rather of a bowl of apples, a restricted color scheme, and a general less-is-more technique.
The tablecloth is ghalamkar, an ancient Persian fabric art from Isfahan, where my household is from. Artisans hand-carve styles into wooden blocks and then mark them onto the fabric. I just take it out for unique events, as my cats love to play with the tassels.