Archived photos revealing life in Iran before the revolution.

Promise of a vibrant future: Female students at Tehran university in 1971 read their books in the sunshine while wearing bold miniskirts and contemporary fashions.

Female students wearing head scarves and make-up are pictured relaxing with cigarettes in a cafe in northern Tehran in 1972

Colorful VW Beetles career down tree-lined Pahlavi avenue, which leads to Vali Ahd Square, in the 1960s.

This image from the 1960s shows glamorous locals kicking off their heels to do the Tehran twist to Iranian rock 'n' roll music of the day.

Sporting mullet haircuts and flares, a group of friends at Tehran university pose together in the 1970s.

In a 70s street scene that could have been easily taken in the United States, Iranian youths in flares socialise on a sidewalk.

Bang on trend: Stylish locals from the 70s pose together in front of a shop in high-waisted flares and wide collared shirts.

A couple breaks the rule of segregated slopes at Mount Dizin, Iran, in 1972.

Male and female medical students at Tehran University listen intently during a lecture in the 1960s.

Clash of traditional and Western influences: A woman in a chador window-shops with a couple in Western clothes, Tehran, in 1972.

An octagonal swimming pool at the guest house of the Iranian National Oil Company near Ahwaz provides relief when the temperatures rise above 100 degrees, pictured here in July 1971.

A street scene showing pedestrians threading their way between bumper-to-bumper traffic in Tehran in June 1970.

During king Shah Mohammad Reza Pahla's reign Iranians wore Western fashions. Here women pick flowers in the 1960s.

Sexes mixed freely as depicted in this shot of a group of young adults relaxing in the sunshine in the 1960s.

A stylishly attired group in contemporary 60s clothes pose up and smile for the camera.

Families and friends relax by the water's edge during an excursion in Iran in the 1960s.

Sepah Square, the main square in Tehran, looks strikingly different with just a smattering of cars in this black-and-white shot dating back to 1946.

Two women wearing their hair in beehives stand proudly before their wireless radio.

A group of smartly dressed men pose in a palm-fringed park, standing before their classic cars.

In the Isfahan bazaar a young boy sits stiffly for his photograph. This picture was taken circa 1972.

During the 70s Mehrabad was one of the busiest and most modern airports in the region. Above, a four-engined Iran Air Boeing 707 sits on the runway.

The Shemshak ski resort in 1971.

Ordinary life before the revolution: Takht e Jamshid Avenue is lined with cars in 1971.

A colourful aerial view of Vali Ahd Square, also known as Meydan e Vali Ahd, in Tehran in 1971.

Young girls dancing in traditional costume are watched by an audience of men and boys in more Western 70s clothing in a Farsi province.

A view of a middle-class suburb in Tehran overlooked by the mountains and captured in the early 1970s.

The 1979 revolution saw the ousting of king Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and the instalment of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, a shift that would have long-lasting and far reaching implications. Above, the Royal Square Meydan-i-Shah with the Royal Mosque in Ishafan, pictured in the 1970s. Many popular historic attractions had their names changed after the revolution.