Baghdad’s Safafeer copper market

Copper plaques and plates hang at the Safafeer market in Baghdad. For hundreds of years, the copper market has been considered hallowed ground. But these days, few people come to buy.

Copper plaques and plates hang at the Safafeer market in Baghdad. For hundreds of years, the copper market has been considered hallowed ground. But these days, few people come to buy.  (Usama Redha / Los Angeles Times)

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Safafeer coppersmith

Sayid Zuair Abu Haidar, 43, grew up at the Safafeer market. His first memories are of visits on summer breaks from school. Now he disparages the trade and mocks any delusions of grandeur that its remaining workers might possess. “There is no Picasso here,” he says.  (Usama Redha / Los Angeles Times)

Safafeer copper goods

Copper plaques and plates hang at the Safafeer market. A flood of factory-produced copper plates and pots from Iran, China and India has been another nail in the coffin for the Baghdad market’s denizens. The pieces that take coppersmith Abu Haidar two days to chisel and pound out, factories spit out by the thousands per hour.  (Usama Redha / Los Angeles Times)

Safafeer copper market

Lamps made by coppersmiths hang at the Safafeer market. Four decades ago, one smith remembers, foreigners would come and buy souvenirs at a market famous for its pointy oil lamps and plaques decorated with the elegant, looping calligraphy of the Koran. But the sales have dried up. “Few people respect the handmade pieces,” he said. “They just want something shiny.”  (Usama Redha / Los Angeles Times)