This drawing is full of symbolism. It focuses on the loss of Persian culture and heritage as generations go on. The woman sitting on the ground symbolizes a Persian woman who has lost her cultural values by time, and has not passed them on to her child. The "not passing on" the culture is represented by the inside of the two hourglasses. Note that in the hourglass beside the woman there is a pomegranate, which sumbolizes the Persian culture. However, in the little girl's hourglass (who represents the new generation) the pomegranate is not there anymore, hence the cultural values were not passed on...

The hourglass of the woman is empty of sand, representing the passage of time... but the pomegranate is also sunk in the sand...The woman's hair (right side) becomes the root of a tree, which shows her heritage and roots. On the other side of her hair... her hair is entering the hourglass, and becoming gray... In the sky we can see a moon and a sun, which shows the confusion of the new generation. In the air we see a traditionally decorated Persian ceramic tile on fire, which symbolizes the loss of something of cultural value. In addition, far in the background, we can see white steps that lead into the air... and at the end of the steps we see fire and smoke. This represents the long cultural path that the Persian people have followed to keep their culture, and it's loss... step by step... generation by generation...
 

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