The Reflections of Identity Conflicts in Cultural Instruments: a case study of Iranian banknotes in Pahlavi and Islamic Republic eras

The present study aims at representing the elements of identity conflicts in the Persian banknotes in the first Pahlavi and the Islamic Republic eras by using content analysis and Peirce''s semiotics. Our findings show that the sign system of banknote indicates a cultural change based on modern patterns، but at the same time، Pahlavi discourse has tried to represent ancient patterns (especially patterns of the Achaemenids). Synchronization of these two patterns seems to be somehow paradoxical. But in the Islamic Republic era، national identity represented by the religious symbolism in its non-historical form. In the final analysis، the results also show that in both of these historical eras، there was an identity conflict going on، so that political systems، in every period، tried to eliminate and banish some of the national elements.