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A QAJAR MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE
Iran, dated 1262 AH (1878)
Black ink and opaque pigments on paper, with silver and gold highlights, the top and right hand margin illuminated with circular scrolling foliate against a dappled ground, the text of the marriage law document in the lower half, the Arabic sections in naskh and the Persian phrases in shekasteh nasta'liq stating the dowry's specified land and gold, and a Qur'an to be exchanged between Mirza Abbas-Qoli and Khadija Sultan, both of Gorgan, the margins bearing four witness seals and signatures, framed and glazed, 69cm x 44cm, 72cm x 47cm including frame.
Provenance: Capitolium Art, Brescia, Italy, 14 - 17 December, lot 336.
£400-£600
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FIVE FOLIOS OF OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS AND TREATISESIran, 19th century and laterComprising an edict regarding a dispute over the ownership of some villages, dated 1287 AH (1870), in shekasteh nasta'liq script, black ink on Smith and Meynier blue-lined paper, watermarked S&M, seal of the crown prince Muzaffar-ud-Din, Shuja'ud-Dawla governor of Khoi, the seal of Amin Lashkar on the reverse, 42cm x 31.3cm; and another, similar, dated 1244 AH (1828); land deeds relating to the sale of a village for 78 Toomans with 13 witnesses present, in a crude hand on plain paper, dated 1166 AH (1752), 43cm x 31.7cm; another document, addressed to the prime minister in shekasteh nasta'liq on plain paper, dated 1268 AH (1852), 33cm x 19.5cm; and one relating to property in Salmas and Khoi region, in shekasteh nasta'liq on plain paper, blue seal of the crown paper, seals of Amir Nezam, Seghat-ul-Mulk, and Majid-ul-Mulk on the reserve, dated 1321 AH (1903), 35cm x 22cm.£200-£400
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A CALLIGRAPHIC COMPOSITION IN GHUBARI SCRIPT
Qajar Iran, dated 1309 AH (1892)
Arabic manuscript on paper, a quatrain to invoke the Ashab-al-'Aba, the five holy saints, each line containing four words, each word in a different colour ink, blue, red, green, and black, in thuluth script, each letter in-filled with prayers, framed and glazed, 30.5cm x 80.5cm, 35cm x 85cm including frame.
£800-£1,200
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A BATTLE SCENE
Safavid Iran, 17th century
Opaque pigments heightened with gold on paper, the vertical composition depicting the moment the army is about to attack, the cavalry ready with their long swords (shamshir), shields and helmets, behind them six cannons engraved with vegetal tendrils ready to fire, an attendant observing the scene perplexed, within golden rules, mounted on a later light blue border sprinkled with gold, mounted, glazed and framed, 31cm x 21.5cm excluding the frame.
£1,500-£1,800
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* A QAJAR WATERCOLOUR OF A STANDING MAIDEN
PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT EUROPEAN PRIVATE COLLECTION
Iran, 19th century
Opaque pigments heightened with gold on paper, finely painted in bright colours, depicting a standing maiden with an ornate red headscarf with boteh and floral motifs, a pearl-studded head ornament reminiscent of Safavid taj and black heron's feather, wearing a tight-fitting jacket with muharramat pattern, a wide pleated pink skirt, and green riding boots, mounted on a paper with English comments, mounted on cardboard, 14cm x 9.7cm excluding the mount.
£400-£600
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* A SMALL WATERCOLOUR OF A QAJAR FEMALE DRUMMER
PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT EUROPEAN PRIVATE COLLECTION
Iran, 19th century
Opaque pigments heightened with gold on paper, an elegantly-dressed female drummer portrayed in the middle of the composition, kneeling on a floral floor spread and leaning against a sumptuously embroidered oval cushion, clad in a green skirt with pearl and stones-embroidered edge, a diaphanous blue vest and a red moharramat floral jacket, fully bejewelled with a black heron feather and a ruby head ornament, strings of pearl necklaces with rubies, in front of her a tall transparent decanter and a porcelain teacup, possibly an exotic import, mounted, glazed and framed, 14cm x 10.5cm excluding the frame.
£400-£600
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* A SMALL WATERCOLOUR OF THE QAJAR RULER FATH 'ALI SHAH
PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT EUROPEAN PRIVATE COLLECTION
Iran, 19th century
Opaque pigments heightened with gold on paper, Fath 'Ali Shah portrayed in the middle of the composition, kneeling on a floral floor spread and leaning against a sumptuously embroidered oval cushion, clad in his pink royal robe subject of several of his most well-known portraits, fully bejewelled with the royal crown, epaulets encrusted with pearls and rubies, bazubands encrusted with emeralds, an encrusted golden khanjar and a long pearl and rubies-encrusted shamshir, a nasta'liq inscribed cusped and lobed cartouche on the right hand-side referring to him, mounted, glazed and framed, 15.7cm x 12.5cm excluding the frame.
£600-£800
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A PORTRAIT OF HUSAYN 'ALI KHAN MO'AYYER OL-MAMALEK
Qajar Iran, Studio of Abol-Hassan Ghaffari Sani' Ol-Molk, terminus post quem 1854
Opaque pigmens on cream paper, the bearded nobleman standing in an interior on a diagonally-designed summer carpet, wearing a tall black Astrakhan kaj-kolah and a red Kerman termeh coat, in white stockings, presenting the first volume of the One Thousand and One Nights manuscript to Nasser ed-Din Shah, the gem-set hilt and large pearl tassel of his dagger visible, within sepia rulings, cream leaf, inscribed on middle left in semi-transparent watercolour in nasta'liq script 'Raqam Abol-Hassan Ghaffari Kashani', framed and glazed, 26cm x 16cm, 48cm x 39.5cm including the frame.
Provenance: Purchased at Accademia Fine Art, Monaco, 10 May 2015, lot 276;
Offered at Millon, Paris, 3 May 2018, lot 270.
This portrait is a copy of a very well-known composition in the Mo'ayyer ol-Mamalek family collection. The original is signed and dated Raqam Abol-Hassan Ghaffari Naqqashbashi, saneh 1270 AH (1854), which points our example to a later date. Both paintings act as important witnesses of the happy confluence of many events shaping 19th-century Iranian art history.
Sani' Ol-Molk (1814-1866) was the son of the celebrated early 19th century painter, Mirza Mohammad Ghaffari, and a pupil of the court painter, Mehr Ali Isfahani. His first king, Mohammad Shah, had already sat for him by the time Sani' Ol Molk was 29. Later he was yet more fortunate to find the support and the means to travel to Italy to study and copy the Renaissance masters at a time most of his countrymen did not travel beyond their province of birth. Sani' Ol-Molk, the father of modern Iranian painting, returned to Iran in 1850. He used his cache of painting materials, colour prints and etchings of the works of European masters as teaching material in his newly founded painting academy. His new approach and newly-mastered techniques introduced all aspects and genres of European painting to an eager audience, prefiguring Nasser ed-Din Shah's embrace of Farang.
The main character of the composition is here holding in his hands a copy of The Arabian Nights manuscript. This was translated into Persian in 1843. In 1848, the young Nasser ed-Din Shah commissioned an illuminated manuscript of the text with royal patronage - and no expense spared - to elevate the status of modern painting and to spearhead a new era of openness. The work was carried out under the supervision of the subject of this portrait, Hossein-Ali Khan, Mo'ayyer ol-Mamalek (d. 1858), with Sani' Ol-Molk as artistic director. The resultant six volumes at the Golestan Palace Library took forty-two artists and seven years to complete. With their unparalleled charm and innovation, the tomes are often discussed as the bridge between the old and the new in Iranian art, as well as society.
The present painting is a fitting tribute by the master-painter in charge of this great project, of the works' supervisor, to the commissioning king. Using European devices, Sani' ol-Molk places the viewer in place of the king, and the head and headdress of the subject within the architectural frame the wall decoration provides. For a thorough discussion, please see Yahya Zoka, Life and Works of Sani' Ol-Molk 1814-1866, Tehran, 2003, p.134. Another similar example of this composition was successfully sold at Christie's London, 17 April 2007, lot 276.
£1,500-£2,000
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* A GRISAILLE FLOWER STUDY
PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT EUROPEAN PRIVATE COLLECTION
Iran, 19th century
Grey tones, white wash, pencil and black ink on paper, in the centre of the composition a fully bloomed carnation with another in its first bloom and three more buds, naturalistic rendering, mounted on a white cardboard frame, 9.3cm x 7.5cm excluding mount.
£300-£500
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* TWO QAJAR DRAWINGS OF IRISES
PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT EUROPEAN PRIVATE COLLECTION
Iran, 19th century
Comprising a tinted drawing of bloomed irises, opaque pigments on cream white paper, framed within later-added concentric borders, coloured in washed brown, light green and deep purple and decorated with golden vegetal trellis, mounted, glazed and framed, 34.7cm x 28.5cm including the frame; and a grisaille drawing, grey tones, white and yellow pigments on cream white paper, a bloomed iris together with white bellflowers, each with their stems, mounted and framed, 9cm x 16cm excluding the white cardboard frame.
£500-£700
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* A QAJAR ENAMELLED GOLD CANE HANDLE
PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT EUROPEAN PRIVATE COLLECTION
Iran, 19th century
Of cylindrical shape, with a domed pommel at the end, the gold surface encrusted with turquoise beads and polychrome-painted enamelled decoration consisting of festoons of pink rosettes and light blue flower heads, green enamel bands framing the composition, 12.5cm long including steel rod.
£1,000-£1,500
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A GOLD-DAMASCENED WATERED-STEEL DAGGER (KHANJAR)
Iran, late 19th - early 20th century
Of typical form, with double-edged curved blade and a pronounced medial ridge, both the blade and the hilt made of steel with very intricate circular patterns, the forte with a polylobed cartouche filled with gold-damascened blooming tendrils, the same pattern repeated on the T-shaped hilt and the scabbard with bulbous ending, possibly the gold inlay restored at a later stage, 50.5cm long including the scabbard.
£800-£1,000
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A PORTRAIT OF MOZAFFAREDDIN SHAH AS CROWN PRINCE (1853-1907)
Iran or France, late 19th century
Opaque pigments on paper, the full-length portrait depicts the prince in heavily embroidered ceremonial military court dress, wearing a portrait miniature medallion of his reigning father, Nasser ed-Din Shah above a double-headed eagle, possibly a Russian gift, framed and glazed, 37.5cm x 20.5cm, 42cm x 25.5cm including frame.
Label on the reverse indicating the location of the portrait, possibly at an establishment near the Louvre museum: Cour Carree, Chambre No2, a droite petite fenetre.
£1,500-£1,800
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λ A KHATAMKARI PEN CASE (QALAMDAN) WITH INKWELL (DAWAT)
Iran, early to mid 19th century
With rounded ends and sliding tray, all sides clad with marquetry mosaic (katamkari) veneer of bone, ivory, metal and coloured wood, painted and varnished, the decoration consisting of several bands of six-pointed stars inside hexagons, the empty space filled with triangles and geometric shapes, the borders decorated with braided copper chains, the interior plain with a tinned copper inkwell, 23cm long.
£800-£1,000
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λ A RECTANGULAR KHATAMKARI BOX WITH TRAY
Iran, late 19th - early 20th century
Comprising a box of rectangular shape, the body clad with marquetry mosaic (khatamkari) veneer of bone, ivory, metal and coloured wood, painted and varnished, the decoration consisting of bands of six-pointed stars inside hexagons, the empty space filled with triangles and geometric shapes, the interior lined with a later black velvet cloth, 18cm x 7cm; and a similar octagonal tray with a large six-pointed star in the centre, 37cm x 24.5cm.
£500-£700
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A LARGE SAFAVID-STYLE LACQUERED PAPIER-MÂCHÉ PEN CASE (QALAMDAN)
Iran, 19th century
With rounded ends and opening, removable lid, the top and sides gold painted on dark ground with horizontal composition of the typical gul-o-bulbul, birds resting on flowering branches near blooming roses, the underside decorated with a gold floral bloom with stylised lotus flowers, hyacinths, roses, chrysanthemums and violets against red ground, the interior plain, 33.5cm x 6cm.
£500-£700
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λ A KHATAMKARI TABLE
Iran, 19th century
The sixteen-sided occasional table minutely worked in fine Persian micro-mosaic with a strong geometric star design, with verdigris-stained bone pieces, the multi-layered border with lobed cartouches, the edges inlaid with black and white chevron pattern, alternate sides with drawers, the tripod turned base with gilt hooves decorated with flowers, the underside of legs painted with a trellis pattern over gilt wood; 61cm diameter of top, 8cm height of top, 62cm height of legs.
£1,500-£2,000
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A PANEL-STYLE POTTERY BOWL
Possibly Kashan, Iran, 14th century
Of circular shape, on short straight foot, with straight rim, the fritware body with underglaze painting in cobalt blue and black, the interior decorated with a multitude of geometric motifs, an eight-pointed floral-shaped star to the centre, further embellished with triangular panels with stippled motif and abstract designs, geometric band around the centre and repeated below the rim, vertical panels with fretwork, blue lines, stippled motif, and chequered pattern to the cavetto, the exterior with stippled lotus panels delineated in cobalt blue lines, copied from Chinese celadon wares; 20.2cm diam.
£800-£1,200
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A SAFAVID BLUE AND WHITE POTTERY VASE
Iran, 17th century
Of compressed globular shape, on straight circular foot, the body underglaze painted in black and blue, the decoration in reserve on a blue ground inspired by 14th-century Chinese models and motifs and consisting of interlocking plump lotus flowers, rosettes and leafy branches, fretwork bands at the top and bottom, the neck a later addition in painted wood, pseudo-Chinese mark in black on the base; 13.5cm high.
Provenance:
With George Usslaub collection, Marseilles, France, 1920s;
Leclere Maison de Ventes, 22 April 2011, lot 40.
£800-£1,000
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* THREE SAFAVID POTTERY VASES
PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT EUROPEAN PRIVATE COLLECTION
Iran, 17th century
All of compressed globular shape, resting on short circular foot, one blue and white example with Chinese-inspired chrysanthemum motifs alternated with arabesques, with a Qajar brass neck incised with mythical figures of local folklore, a pseudo-Chinese mark to the base, 15cm high; another with copper-lustre decoration on monochrome blue ground, the decoration consisting of concentric bands of vegetal motifs, split palmettes scrollwork and flower garlands, 12.8cm; and the last, a monochrome blue vase with raised white slip decoration consisting of floral scrolling tendrils below the neck followed by a hatched motif; 12cm high.
£1,500-£2,000
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A BLUE AND WHITE POTTERY QALYAN (WATER-PIPE)
Iran, 17th - 18th century
Of typical shape with compressed globular body, on a straight circular foot, rising to a flared neck with a circular mouth, on the side a circular hole to fit the smoking pipe's tube, underglaze painted in cobalt blue and black, the Chinese-inspired decoration consisting of roundels with stylised lions on the body and vegetal motifs around the neck; 19cm high.
Provenance: Acquired in 1960s-1970s in Iran and in the UK since 1981.
It is interesting to notice that the decoration of this qalyan is not the only element inspired by Chinese export porcelain models. Indeed, as Oliver Watson explains, the Iranian potters have here taken a Chinese type of spouted pouring vessel (called kendi) and transformed it into the base of a water-pipe (O. Watson, Ceramics from Islamic Lands, London, 2004, p. 472).
£600-£800
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A TURQUOISE-GLAZED KUBACHI POTTERY BOWL
Possibly Tabriz, Iran, 17th century
Of circular shape, on short straight foot, the fritware body painted in black and covered in a turquoise glaze, the cavetto and the exterior walls decorated with rows of butis in black, the centre with a stellar flower, the rim with a triangular motif, 23.5cm diam, and 8cm high.
£200-£300
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* A BLUE AND WHITE POTTERY BOWL
PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT EUROPEAN PRIVATE COLLECTION
Iran, 18th century
Of hemispherical shape with slightly everted, ridged rim, on circular straight foot, underglaze painted in cobalt blue and black, the centre decorated with a blue flower head surrounded by buds on a white ground, the exterior with Chinese-inspired peonies and interlocking tendrils resembling Chinese clouds, 19cm diam.
£300-£500
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A SAFAVID BLUE AND WHITE GOMBROON POTTERY EWER
Iran, 17th century
Of compressed globular form with faceted sides, on straight circular foot, rising to a tall cylindrical neck with domed mouth, a faceted tapering spout, the body, shoulder and mouth decorated with foliate mouldings and painted in underglaze cobalt blue, the decoration on the body consisting of roundels of floral and scale patterning, mounted with a curved metal handle decorated with bands of flowerheads and scrolls, 20cm high.
Provenance: The Late Henri d'Allemagne (d. 1950) Collection.
Offered at Sotheby's London (9 April 2008, lot 197) and in the same vendor's collection since,
For further information on this lot please see the catalogue online.
£800-£1,200
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A BLUE AND WHITE POTTERY INKWELL
Iran, 18th century
Of elongated rectangular shape, with rounded ends, on a carved foot following the shape of the body, the Chinese-inspired design with three holes for the ink and a large rectangular compartment for water on the top, distancing from Iranian models, the sides underglaze painted in cobalt blue over a white ground, the decoration consisting of intertwined stylised Chinese cloud bands against a light blue ground with more stylised ruyi and shells, resting on a wooden base with four feet, 22.2cm x 5cm.
£800-£1,200
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A BLUE AND WHITE POTTERY CHARGER
Iran, 18th century
Of typical circular shape, on a straight short foot, the wide cavetto rising to an everted flat rim, underglaze painted in cobalt blue against a white ground, the interior inspired by Chinese blue and white porcelain chargers with lotus flowers, sprays of leaves and vegetal tendrils, polylobed cartouches filled with Chinese cloud bands and mythical aquatic creatures similar to Chinese carps, on one end of the rim a nightingale amongst flowers and leaves, reminiscent of the typically Persian gol-o-bolbol motif, the exterior with simple blue lines and floral sprays interspersed with leaves, six round feet below the main circular foot, a star mark on the base, 45.5cm diam.
£400-£600
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A QAJAR BLUE AND WHITE POTTERY TRAY
Iran, 19th century
Of octagonal shape, on straight octagonal foot, with splayed rim, the body underglaze painted in cobalt blue, the decoration consisting of a central natural scene set in a lush landscape and populated by gazelles and birds, surrounded by two decorative bands, the first with rosettes and split palmettes and the latter with scrolling vegetal tendrils, base plain, 32.5cm x 22cm.
£400-£600
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* A SET OF PORCELAIN BOWLS AND DISHES WITH 'FAMILLE ROSE' DECORATION FROM THE SERVICE MADE FOR MAS'UD MIRZA ZILL AL-SULTAN
PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT EUROPEAN PRIVATE COLLECTION
China and Persia, two bowls dated 1297 AH (1879-80) and one dated 1301 AH (1883-4)
Comprising three porcelain bowls and matching dishes, each of varying size, two smaller and one larger, each one with typical Guangdong famille rose decoration and composition, the interior of the bowls embellished with bright polychrome colours and lobed medallions filled with Chinese interior scenes with figures interspersed with floral bouquets with birds, butterflies and fruits against a gold ground; the rim fully gilt, the exterior of the bowls and the interior of the matching dishes with the same composition with the addition of golden roundels filled with golden ownership inscriptions, the exterior of the dishes plain, base unmarked, the largest bowl 17.6cm diam, and 8cm high; the largest dish 22.3cm diam, and 4.5cm high; the two smaller bowls approximately 11cm diam, and 5.5cm high; and the two smaller dishes 16cm diam, and 3cm high.
Inscription: Commissioned by His Excellency, the auspicious, the most glorious, the most high, the most noble, the eminent Sultan Mas'ud Mirza Yamin al-Dawlah Zill al-Sultan, 1297 AH or 1301 AH
The golden inscriptions on this set of vessels identify them as part of a much larger service commissioned by Prince Mas'ud Mirza Yamin al-Dawlah Zill al-Sultan (1850-1918), the eldest son of Nasr al-Din Shah (1831-1896). Although he was the son of the ruling Shah, his mother was a commoner. This link cost him the much longed-for crown as it excluded him from being the next in line to the Qajar throne, a role inherited by his younger brother Muzaffar al-Din. Instead, Mas'ud Mirza was appointed governor of Isfahan in 1866, where he ruled almost uninterruptedly for 33 years (Heidi Walcher, In the Shadow of the King: Zill al-Sultan and Isfahan under the Qajars, London, 2008, p. 35). In 1870, Nasr al-Din granted him the title of Zill al-Sultan (the Shadow of the King). From then on, Mas'ud Mirza turned Isfahan, the largest economic and trading centre in Iran at the time, into his own quasi-royal dominion.
Just a year before appointing Mas'ud Mirza Isfahan's governor, the Shah commissioned a large famille rose service in Guangdong, China. As well as classic Chinese interior scenes and floral medallions, the service also featured roundels with portraits of the Shah and his two sons, as well as epigraphic roundels-all elements clearly indicating royal attribution (Daniel Nadler, China to Order-Focusing on the 19th century and surveying polychrome export porcelain produced during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1908), France, 2001, p. 167). Mas'ud Mirza would certainly have seen his father's service, which suggests that his own commission of the Chinese porcelain presented here is no mere coincidence or fashion statement. Instead, it seems indicative of his longing for royal recognition. Literally in the shadow of the Shah, as his title states, in 1879 Mas'ud Mirza commissioned his own vessels from the same kiln that had produced his father's 1865 service, adding unique features which make them clearly attributable to him. Indeed, each vessel is marked with a gold roundel with a golden epigraphic inscription clearly mentioning his name, Mas'ud Mirza, and title, Zill al-Sultan; and his choice of background colour, a tinge of grey-mauve, is very much characteristic of this production and hadn't been seen in Iran before his time (D. Nadler, p. 171).
£3,000-£5,000<@> |
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A LARGE QAJAR BLUE AND WHITE POTTERY BOWL
Iran, dated 1281 AH (1864)
Of hemispherical shape, on short circular foot, the body underglaze painted in cobalt blue, the decoration to the interior consisting of a central floral medallion, below the rim a band of Chinese-inspired fretwork with geometric patterns and vegetal motifs, the exterior with polylobed medallions on blue ground filled with blooming bouquets, a small fretwork band with dotted pattern below the rim, signed and dated on the base, Amal-e Mohammad (?), 1281 AH; 28.5cm diam.
£200-£300
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A BLUE AND WHITE POTTERY BOWL
Iran, 18th century
Of hemispherical shape, on short circular foot, the body underglaze painted in cobalt blue, the decoration consisting of a floral medallion to the cavetto, interlocking vegetal tendrils below the rim, and polylobed floral medallions on a white ground with cross-hatched motifs to the exterior, imitating in shape and style Chinese rice bowls, a pseudo-Chinese mark to the base; 21cm diam.
£300-£500
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A LARGE BLUE AND WHITE POTTERY VASE
Iran, 17th - 18th century
Of rectangular vertical shape, on plain base, with a twisted, carved neck and pinched mouth, the sides braided, the body painted in underglaze cobalt blue, the decoration of the front and back consisting of a garden-like scene with peacocks, rosettes and interlocking tendrils within an iwan-shaped frame, at the top the signature Amal-e Hasan (the work of Hasan), the sides ornate with more rosettes and leafy scrolls, 34.5cm high.
£500-£700
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A QAJAR BLUE AND WHITE POTTERY JAR
Iran, late 19th century
Of tall ovoid shape, with a narrow circular and splayed base, rising into a wide body, followed by sharply-rounded shoulder, a short and narrow neck with reinforced mouth, the shape imitating Chinese blue and white porcelain meiping vases, the central band with polylobed medallions filled with floral bloom, two bands of cross-hatched motif above and below it, below the neck interlocking stylised saz leaf tendrils and rosettes, the base unglazed and with a hole in the centre; 38.7cm high.
£200-£300
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A COPPER-LUSTRE POTTERY BOWL
Iran, 17th century
Of hemispherical shape, on straight circular foot, with straight rim, the body except the foot covered in thick transparent glaze, the interior with a profusion of copper-lustre painted flowers and a fretwok band below the rim, the exterior decorated with a design of stylised leaves of infilled bloom alternated to plain ones; 19cm diam, and 8.7cm high.
£200-£300
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TWO SAFAVID CUERDA SECA POTTERY TILES
Isfahan, Iran, 17th century
Comprising two tiles, one squared and the other rectangular, both painted in yellow, cobalt blue, green, turquoise, black and brown, the decoration consisting of scrolling leafy vegetal tendrils with fragments of rosettes and lotus flowers, the largest 22cm x 22cm.
Provenance: UK private collection since early 1970s.
£2,400-£2,600
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A SAFAVID CUERDA SECA POTTERY TILE
Isfahan, Iran, 17th century
Of square form, painted in cobalt blue, yellow, green, turquoise, white, brown and black, the decoration against yellow ground consisting of a central stylised lotus flower blooming from interlocking vegetal tendrils issuing saz leaves and rosettes, 22cm x 19.5cm.
Provenance: Offered at Sotheby's London, 12 October 2005, lot 90;
UK private collection since early 1970s.
£2,000-£2,200
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A COPPER-LUSTRE POTTERY VASE
Iran, 17th - 18th century
Of compressed globular shape, ridged in the round, on short circular foot, with a splayed neck and wide circular mouth, the copper-lustre decoration consisting of drop-shaped medallions, either coloured in or filled with vegetal motifs, on the base an inventory number 2238; 11.5cm high.
£200-£300
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* A SAFAVID SILK AND METAL THREAD BROCADE PANEL
PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT EUROPEAN PRIVATE COLLECTION
Iran, 17th century
The panel of silk and metallic thread woven around a silk core, brocaded in blue, cream, and pale pink with rows of oviate forms, infilled with delicate floral and foliate motifs, framed and glazed, 106cm x 40cm, 115cm x 49cm including frame.
£1,800-£2,200
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A FIGURAL FARS BRASS BOWL
Iran, 14th - 15th century
Of compressed globular shape, on a plain base engraved with two epigraphic medallions, with narrowing shoulders and a straight reinforced neck, the engraved decoration on the exterior consisting of a large figural band with musicians in roundels interspersed with scrolling and interlocking leafy vegetal tendrils, above it three decorative bands with dotted motif, braided knotwork and further scrolling tendrils, below it cusped and arrow-shaped drooping volutes, the interior with engraved fish to the centre, 19cm diam, and 14cm high.
Provenance: Acquired in 1960s-1970s in Iran and in the UK since 1981.
Later epigraphic medallions to the base, possibly from the Safavid period, 17th century: Hajji the servant of Mohammad Taqi (9th Imam), The slave of the great Mohammad Hashemi.
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* ALARGE COPPER BASIN
PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT EUROPEAN PRIVATE COLLECTION
Iran, 18th century
Of conical shape, resting on a large circular plain base, narrowing towards the neck, with a splayed rim with a pronounced outward bent, the body and rim engraved with typically Safavid motifs and filled with a black substance, the rim with scrolling rosette tendrils, the neck with alternating arabesques and tri-lobed medallions on stylised volutes, below it another band of vegetal motifs with split palmettes contained within heart-shaped tendrils, the lower band on the body with a sinusoidal fretwork and rosette band passing through polylobed medallions filled with arabesques, an undeciphered later-engraved signature inside the rim, 32.5cm diam, and 19.5cm high.
£800-£1,200
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* A PIERCED STEEL BALANCE ARM
PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT EUROPEAN PRIVATE COLLECTION
Iran, 17th century
Of typical shape, the two arms ending in bold crescent-shaped volutes, the central balancing element hung onto a chain, hollow to the centre to let the bob move freely according to the weight, the pyriform bob topped by a brass pointer, the pierced decoration on the arms, volutes and bob shaped as interlocking tendrils of tri-lobed palmettes, 20.5cm wide.
£300-£500
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A LARGE TINNED COPPER BOWL
Safavid Iran, late 16th - early 17th century
Of compressed globular shape, resting on a plain base, with a flared neck and slightly splayed flat rim, the decoration consisting of two main registers, the register around the neck against a hatched ground and engraved with eight epigraphic cartouches with auspicious wishes and panegyrics to the owner (madh), interspersed with eight cartouches filled with vegetal tendrils and arabesques; a further sixteen roundels alternated to the cartouches, eight filled with flower heads and the remaining eight with wild animals, in order from right to left: a fox, a young buffalo, a monkey, a hyena-looking quadruped, a lion, a gazelle, a hare, and an ibex against a ground of scrollwork, the register on the body with cusped medallions filled with split palmettes and tendrils alternated with lobed medallions filled with arabesques and similar wild animals, the rim engraved with continuous scrolling leafy tendrils and an ownership cartouche among them, 34cm diam.
Inscription around the neck:
May the world always follow your wish //
May luck be your servant, like I am //
May the spread of your good fortune be evident every day //
May the table of your feasts be adorned //
I wish for you only victory and good luck //
May you always have a special servant, like I am //
Every place ...
May all his friends always turn into enemies.
Inscription on the rim:
Saheb-e Atabek Sardar Bot (?)
Ownership signature:
Saheb-e Seyyed Mohammad
It is interesting to notice that the sequence of wild animals present on this bowl is in some ways reminiscent, but not entirely similar, to another example mentioned in A. S. Melikian Chirvani, Islamic Metalwork from the Iranian World 8th - 18th centuries, 1982, pp. 317 - 318, fig. 143. Indeed, the sequence starts with the fox but then the other animals follow in a different order. That said, the theme - the main animal characters of the hunt - seems to be the same. Even more interesting is the fact that the panegyric (madh) engraved on the published bowl matches the inscription on our bowl for six out of eight hemistichs, consolidating the scholar's assumption that bowls of this shape and part of this stylistic group must have been common during Shah 'Abbas' time (p. 317).
£800-£1,000
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λ A SAFAVID KARD WITH WALRUS IVORY HANDLE
Iran, 18th century
With a long single-edged wootz steel blade, with reinforced tip and thick ridge, the walrus ivory panels fitted to the steel tang with five studs, the tang and ricasso with gold-damscened vegetal tendrils running all around the handle, 29.5cm long.
£600-£800
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A DAMASCENED STEEL GUNPOWDER FLASK
Iran, 17th century
Of typical curved shape with pronounced ridge on the exterior, the lid, lever and four hooks ornate with pierced star-shaped decoration, the tip of the lever shaped as a bird's head, 13.5cm long.
£800-£1,000
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* A SAFAVID COPPER BATH PAIL
PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT EUROPEAN PRIVATE COLLECTION
Iran, 17th century
Of typical compressed baluster shape, resting on a plain circular base, rising to a flared globular shoulder and narrowing down onto a straight short neck, the body, rim and handle cast separately, engraved and filled with a black substance against a cross-hatched ground, the rim and foot ornate with a repeating band of heart-shaped tendrils of stylised palmettes; below the rim six lobed cartouches with calligraphic nasta'liq inscriptions of a poetical composition (qat'e) interspersed with quatrefoils; the rest of the body decorated with fine spiralling scrolls of Timurid-inspired split palmettes, arabesques, stylised lotus flowers and lobed cartouches filled with Chinese-inspired cloud bands, the handle with more arabesques and fretwork bands on the sides, an ownership inscription on the interior of the rim, 19.7cm diam, and 17.8cm high.
For a similar bucket, please see A. S. Melikian - Chirvani, Islamic Metalwork from the Iranian World 8th - 18th centuries, 1982, pp. 306 - 307, fig. 135. Differently from the published example, our bucket doesn't present any decoration on the underside. However, the overall decorative vocabulary and composition seem to be the same. Indeed, both buckets present six epigraphic cartouches on the rim, among which the name of the owner is engraved; they are both inscribed with examples of poetical fragments or qat'e; their shapes are identical; and their decorative motifs, though slightly different, are drawn from the same stylistic vocabulary present on 17th-century Safavid metalwork.
For the full inscription around the neck and its translation, please see the catalogue online.
£1,500-£2,000
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TWO TINNED COPPER BOWLS
Iran, 18th century
Comprising one bowl of compressed globular shape, on a plain base, with narrowing shoulders and a tall splayed neck, the body engraved with a calligraphic band around the neck invoking the Twelve Imams, above and below it bands of vegetal motifs, fretworks and arabesque medallions, near one of the medallions an ownership cusped cartouche inscribed 'Saheb-e Mir Mohammad (?)', 18cm diam, and 9.7cm high; and another deep bowl of hemispherical shape, on a plain base, with reinforced rim, the calligraphic band below the rim with a hemistich from the Bustan of Sa'di and two hemistichs from Ghazal 118 by Hafez, a later ownership inscription dated 1179 AH (1765) below the epigraphic band, 23cm diam, and 8cm high.
Provenance: German private collection acquired prior to 1999.
£600-£800
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A SAFAVID TINNED-COPPER BOWL
Iran, 17th century
Of compressed globular shape, with a narrower neck and gently splayed rim, the body engraved with a sinusoidal stylised cloudband with fretwork on a field of lobed medallions filled with split palmettes, flower heads and arabesques, the nasta'liq inscription around the neck an invocation to Allah to bless the Prophet and the Twelve Imams, on scrolling floriated tendrils against a hatched ground, an ownership inscription around the rim among rectangular floral cartouches; 23cm diam.
Provenance: Bonhams Knightsbridge, 14 June 2012, lot 30.
Inscription on the rim: 'It's owner, 'Ali ibn Haji Malek Ahmad'
£1,800-£2,200
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TWO BRASS DIVINATION BOWLS
Iran, 18th - 19th century
Of hemispherical shape, on a short and straight base, the interior and exterior engraved with Quranic texts (vv. 1, 113, 255), praises for the Prophet, and the high names of the divine, interspersed with coded lettering and numbers, the central raised dome exclusively with codes, 21.5cm diameter, 6.6cm high; and another, smaller, the interior engraved with the names of the twelve Shi'a saints in nasta'liq script, 14.5cm diameter, 4.2cm high.
£600-£800
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A QAJAR FREE-BLOWN GREEN GLASS SPRINKLER
Possibly Shiraz, Iran, 19th century
Of typical shape, with globular body resting on a circular worked foot, with sinuous elongated neck and broad flaring pear-shaped rim, 33cm high.
For further information on this lot please see the catalogue online.
£400-£600
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TWO QAJAR FREE-BLOWN BLUE GLASS SPRINKLERS
Iran, late 18th - 19th century
Of typical shape, with globular bodies resting on circular feet, with sinuous elongated necks and broad flaring pear-shaped rims, the body of the light blue one worked to create subtle ridges, the tallest 33cm high.
£400-£600
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