How Iran Threw the World’s Greatest Party In a Desert

In 1971, Iran threw an extravagant and exclusive party to commemorate the 2500th anniversary of the Persian empire. The party had a grandeur never seen before in the world’s recorded history. It had delicious food from the world’s best restaurant, exquisite drinks, luxurious accommodations, medieval European style decorations, and more importantly – the party had the most decorated guestlist – heads of states from 65 different countries, emperors, kings and queens, princes and princesses, sheiks, sultans, and business figures of all kinds from 5 different continents. The venue of the event was not some ancient castle or a seven-star hotel, instead, everything was organized from scratch, in the middle of a desert, by building plastic tents. The cost of all of this? Not a million dollars; Not a billion dollars; this party almost cost a dynasty. It proved to be a stepping stone for the rise of the Iranian revolution and the fall of the Iranian Monarchy that changed the country forever.