Social Status of Handicrafts and Traditional Arts: A Look into Kashan Copper Work in the Past and Present Time

Kashan copper work is one of the old and traditional arts and crafts of this historic city which, like the most handcrafts of Kashan, has encountered unprecedented downturn over the years and lost its genuine position today. The main part of Kashan bazaar, which had once been devoted to copper workshops based on historical documents and artisan's and public recounting, is now transferred to a public place for trade and sale of ordinary and daily products. Today we can hardly find copper works or the skilful artisans of this industry. In the present research presented as a paper, the realm of traditional metalwork, especially copper is studied. The case study in this research is the historic bazaar of Kashan city as a valuable sample. This is a field and library research (documentary and content analysis) in which the reasons for stagnation of this industry are studied and essential solutions or suggestions are presented by emphasis on the obtained information and authenticated sources.