Mesopotamia and Persia
See also : Sculpture Ancient sculpture Islam Religious texts Manuscript Textiles Safavid carpets Animals Cats
Chronology : Origin 1400-1429 1530-1539 1570-1599 17th century 1600-1609 1650-1659 1820-1829
Chronology : Origin 1400-1429 1530-1539 1570-1599 17th century 1600-1609 1650-1659 1820-1829
5000 years ago - The Guennol Lioness, Elam
2007 SOLD for 57 M$ including premium by Sotheby's
narrated in 2020
The Guennol Lioness was sold for $ 57M including premium by Sotheby's on December 5, 2007, lot 30. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
This very finely chiseled stone figure 8.3 cm high has the head of a lioness on a human body. It certainly comes from the Iranian plateau and was sold in 1931 to a New York merchant. Its discovery thus precedes the excavations of Tell Agrab, begun in 1936 by a team from the University of Chicago appealed by other finds among the antique dealers of Baghdad.
Such hybrid representations between human and feline date back to prehistoric cultures. The ivory lion-man from the Hohlenstein-Stadel cave, dated ca 35,000 to 40,000 years ago by radiocarbon, is the oldest authenticated example of figurative art. The Chauvet cave, painted 30,000 years ago, also includes a lion-woman hybrid.
The Guennol Lioness was sculpted about 5,000 years ago. It belongs to the Proto-Elamite culture, characterized by the development of a proto-writing that has not been decrypted. It is several centuries earlier than the use of the sphinx as a necropolis guardian in Egypt.
It is one of a kind in the round, but is related to similar figures that raise mountains or huge trunks in two-dimensional sigillary iconography. These representations are therefore symbols of extreme power, confirmed in the Guennol Lioness by the hypertrophy of the muscles and the authoritarian position of the head. The head is pierced, allowing to hang it to the neck of a prominent character.
Its name and its exact role in the mythology of that time are not known. It must be analyzed alongside its male counterpart, a bull's head on a human body, of which a kneeling figure is kept at the Metropolitan Museum in New York. Unlike the Guennol Lioness whose hands are joined on the abdomen, this proto-Elamite hybrid holds a liturgical vessel.
Guennol is the pseudonym chosen by the couple of collectors who acquired it in 1948 and entrusted its exhibition for almost 60 years to the Brooklyn Museum of Art.
This very finely chiseled stone figure 8.3 cm high has the head of a lioness on a human body. It certainly comes from the Iranian plateau and was sold in 1931 to a New York merchant. Its discovery thus precedes the excavations of Tell Agrab, begun in 1936 by a team from the University of Chicago appealed by other finds among the antique dealers of Baghdad.
Such hybrid representations between human and feline date back to prehistoric cultures. The ivory lion-man from the Hohlenstein-Stadel cave, dated ca 35,000 to 40,000 years ago by radiocarbon, is the oldest authenticated example of figurative art. The Chauvet cave, painted 30,000 years ago, also includes a lion-woman hybrid.
The Guennol Lioness was sculpted about 5,000 years ago. It belongs to the Proto-Elamite culture, characterized by the development of a proto-writing that has not been decrypted. It is several centuries earlier than the use of the sphinx as a necropolis guardian in Egypt.
It is one of a kind in the round, but is related to similar figures that raise mountains or huge trunks in two-dimensional sigillary iconography. These representations are therefore symbols of extreme power, confirmed in the Guennol Lioness by the hypertrophy of the muscles and the authoritarian position of the head. The head is pierced, allowing to hang it to the neck of a prominent character.
Its name and its exact role in the mythology of that time are not known. It must be analyzed alongside its male counterpart, a bull's head on a human body, of which a kneeling figure is kept at the Metropolitan Museum in New York. Unlike the Guennol Lioness whose hands are joined on the abdomen, this proto-Elamite hybrid holds a liturgical vessel.
Guennol is the pseudonym chosen by the couple of collectors who acquired it in 1948 and entrusted its exhibition for almost 60 years to the Brooklyn Museum of Art.
879 BCE The Guardian Angels of the Nimrud Palace
2018 SOLD for $ 31M including premium
Archaeologists wanted to retrieve the lost Assyrian cities mentioned in the Bible. From 1845 Layard releases the ruins of a huge palace near the Tigris river. He believes that he found Nineveh. The palace name of Nimrud refers to a character identified in Genesis as a founder of cities. It will be later identified that the site explored by Layard was the most sumptuous palace of Kalhu which was the capital of the Assyrian empire from 879 BCE to 706 BCE.
Founded by Ashur-nasir-pal II over the ruins of a previous city at the time when the Assyrian empire claimed an ambition for a universal kingdom, Kalhu had been one of the greatest urban planning projects made in antiquity. The annual military campaigns of Ashurnasirpal were very efficient and the vanquished peoples supplied the work force for his constructions.
The 120 x 200 m palace excavated by Layard included many rooms separated from the inner courtyards by mud brick walls. About 400 shallow bas-reliefs in gypsum served as a base for these painted walls.
On July 6, 1994, Christie's sold for £ 7.7M including premium an incomplete 183 x 117 x 6.4 cm bas-relief that had been presented by Layard to one of his sponsors. It displays a beardless eunuch and a winged bearded deity ready to serve the king, and has retained three-quarters of a standard cuneiform inscription recalling the achievements of the king supported by the gods. Layard had been authorized by the Grand Vizier to export his discoveries.
On October 31 in New York, Christie's sells as lot 101 a bas-relief 224 x 196 cm that includes the standard inscription mingled in the image. It is illustrated with a single full size standing figure in Egyptian profile, larger than life and complete. This winged bearded creature is busy anointing a tree of life. Its mirror image is known. The pair served to flank a gateway for which our bearded deity was somehow the guardian angel.
Please watch the video shared by Christie's. A digital technology enables to reconstruct the original colors, known by traces of pigments on some of the reliefs.
Founded by Ashur-nasir-pal II over the ruins of a previous city at the time when the Assyrian empire claimed an ambition for a universal kingdom, Kalhu had been one of the greatest urban planning projects made in antiquity. The annual military campaigns of Ashurnasirpal were very efficient and the vanquished peoples supplied the work force for his constructions.
The 120 x 200 m palace excavated by Layard included many rooms separated from the inner courtyards by mud brick walls. About 400 shallow bas-reliefs in gypsum served as a base for these painted walls.
On July 6, 1994, Christie's sold for £ 7.7M including premium an incomplete 183 x 117 x 6.4 cm bas-relief that had been presented by Layard to one of his sponsors. It displays a beardless eunuch and a winged bearded deity ready to serve the king, and has retained three-quarters of a standard cuneiform inscription recalling the achievements of the king supported by the gods. Layard had been authorized by the Grand Vizier to export his discoveries.
On October 31 in New York, Christie's sells as lot 101 a bas-relief 224 x 196 cm that includes the standard inscription mingled in the image. It is illustrated with a single full size standing figure in Egyptian profile, larger than life and complete. This winged bearded creature is busy anointing a tree of life. Its mirror image is known. The pair served to flank a gateway for which our bearded deity was somehow the guardian angel.
Please watch the video shared by Christie's. A digital technology enables to reconstruct the original colors, known by traces of pigments on some of the reliefs.
Major consignment of ancient art: 3000-year-old Assyrian relief expected to raise over $10m at @ChristiesInc:https://t.co/0GZH2NTC1I pic.twitter.com/cGVQqtW7yk
— AntiquesTradeGazette (@ATG_Editorial) September 17, 2018
Persian Cosmography
2021 SOLD for £ 3.1M including premium
The city of Herat, nicknamed the Pearl of Khorasan, is prosperous and coveted. It was taken in 1175 CE by the Ghurids, Buddhists who converted to Islam. then entered the Khwarazm empire in 1214 before being destroyed by the Mongols in 1221.
It is an important cultural center. A traveler from the Ghurid era announces 359 colleges, 12,000 shops, 6,000 bathhouses, caravanserais, mills, a dervish convent, a Zoroastrian fire temple. The specialty of Herat at the same time is the work of bronze inlaid with precious metals. Islamism becomes preponderant with the construction of the great mosque in 1201.
On March 31 in London, Sotheby's sells a circular brass ritual basin, most likely made in Herat, lot 74 estimated £ 1M. It measures 50 cm in diameter with an everted scalloped rim 11.6 cm high. The interior is entirely decorated with silver inlays which have remained intact.
The concentric registers constitute a complete cosmography with Persian and Hindu influences without any Islamic element. Treasured for more than sixty years in a collection, it was unpublished but is decoded through its iconographic similarities with the Vaso Vescovali, a zodiacal tin bowl kept in the British Museum.
Saturn, the most distant planet from earth, sits in the center with a forbidding expression. It is surrounded by the circle of the four other planets plus Sun and Moon. Each of these seven allegories has several arms to display its attributes, in the Hindu tradition. Most of them brandish severed human heads. The figures are separated by a network of lines that looks like a weaving stitch.
The next circle is the star zodiac, in the usual denomination of the twelve signs, consisting of the day house and the night house of the five planets and one each for Sun and Moon. The next two circles are respectively made up of twelve pairs of fish and then crescent moons. The wall is illustrated with a frieze of waq-waq, the mythical Persian tree whose branches and fruits turn into human heads screaming "waq waq". The last circle is a frieze of heads and birds.
It is an important cultural center. A traveler from the Ghurid era announces 359 colleges, 12,000 shops, 6,000 bathhouses, caravanserais, mills, a dervish convent, a Zoroastrian fire temple. The specialty of Herat at the same time is the work of bronze inlaid with precious metals. Islamism becomes preponderant with the construction of the great mosque in 1201.
On March 31 in London, Sotheby's sells a circular brass ritual basin, most likely made in Herat, lot 74 estimated £ 1M. It measures 50 cm in diameter with an everted scalloped rim 11.6 cm high. The interior is entirely decorated with silver inlays which have remained intact.
The concentric registers constitute a complete cosmography with Persian and Hindu influences without any Islamic element. Treasured for more than sixty years in a collection, it was unpublished but is decoded through its iconographic similarities with the Vaso Vescovali, a zodiacal tin bowl kept in the British Museum.
Saturn, the most distant planet from earth, sits in the center with a forbidding expression. It is surrounded by the circle of the four other planets plus Sun and Moon. Each of these seven allegories has several arms to display its attributes, in the Hindu tradition. Most of them brandish severed human heads. The figures are separated by a network of lines that looks like a weaving stitch.
The next circle is the star zodiac, in the usual denomination of the twelve signs, consisting of the day house and the night house of the five planets and one each for Sun and Moon. The next two circles are respectively made up of twelve pairs of fish and then crescent moons. The wall is illustrated with a frieze of waq-waq, the mythical Persian tree whose branches and fruits turn into human heads screaming "waq waq". The last circle is a frieze of heads and birds.
#AuctionUpdate Written in the stars: This magnificent 12th-century silver-inlaid scalloped basin - adorned with astrological designs - soars to £3.1 million, after competition from 4 bidders #SothebysMiddleEast pic.twitter.com/sGfVIjgeuW
— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) March 31, 2021
1274 Mosul Candlestick
2021 SOLD for £ 6.6M by Sotheby's
A sumptuous candlestick in fine condition was sold for £ 6.6M from a lower estimate of £ 2M by Sotheby's on October 27, 2021, lot 170.
This piece 26 cm high and 30 cm diameter on the base is facetted in nine parts. The slightly depressed concave body is decorated with a fully circular frieze of 27 standing soldiers and courtiers. At other places narrow friezes display seated musicians, running animals and foliage.
Inscriptions on the shoulder and upper and lower bands of the body appeal in an anthropomorphic script to "Perpetual Glory and Safe Life and Increasing Prosperity and Perfect Good-fortune", including further details of that wish.
It has obviously been commissioned by a high ranked courtier to do homage to a powerful ruler. The use was to kiss the ground and withdraw after the present. Thousands of beeswax candles were lit in the candlesticks in full night palace pageants that included dancing.
Mosul had been the foremost center for inlaid metalwork. The iconography of the candlestick is comparable to a basin signed by one al-Mawsili and dated 673 AH matching 1274 CE while the city was under Ilkhan rule. The candlestick is certainly from that period because the detailed style of such images was soon stylized and weakened. Both are great examples of a revival of Islamic craft under the Mongols.
A candlestick of similar shape and use inscribed to a Mamluk Emir in the period 741-746 AH matching 1340-1345 AD was sold for £ 4.5M by Sotheby's on April 6, 2011.
This piece 26 cm high and 30 cm diameter on the base is facetted in nine parts. The slightly depressed concave body is decorated with a fully circular frieze of 27 standing soldiers and courtiers. At other places narrow friezes display seated musicians, running animals and foliage.
Inscriptions on the shoulder and upper and lower bands of the body appeal in an anthropomorphic script to "Perpetual Glory and Safe Life and Increasing Prosperity and Perfect Good-fortune", including further details of that wish.
It has obviously been commissioned by a high ranked courtier to do homage to a powerful ruler. The use was to kiss the ground and withdraw after the present. Thousands of beeswax candles were lit in the candlesticks in full night palace pageants that included dancing.
Mosul had been the foremost center for inlaid metalwork. The iconography of the candlestick is comparable to a basin signed by one al-Mawsili and dated 673 AH matching 1274 CE while the city was under Ilkhan rule. The candlestick is certainly from that period because the detailed style of such images was soon stylized and weakened. Both are great examples of a revival of Islamic craft under the Mongols.
A candlestick of similar shape and use inscribed to a Mamluk Emir in the period 741-746 AH matching 1340-1345 AD was sold for £ 4.5M by Sotheby's on April 6, 2011.
This sumptuous gold & silver-inlaid candlestick dates all the way back to circa 1275. The body features a stately parade of courtiers and musicians with the decorations embodying the ceremonies of the period.
— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) October 4, 2021
Read more here: https://t.co/9cQoEEVoAa#SothebysMiddleEast pic.twitter.com/lXMc1EvOxZ
> 1417 Persian Manuscripts on Chinese Paper
2020 SOLD for £ 7M including premium
The ambition of Timur (Tamerlane) had been to become the Khan of the Mongols and the Caliph of the Muslims. He could not obtain these titles for traditional reasons but he was the most effective conqueror and was never defeated. His capital was Samarkand.
The Timurid empire broke out after his death. His son Shahrukh reigned over Persia and transferred the capital from Samarkand to Herat. He re-established relations with China through the silk road and became immensely wealthy. He did not seek conquests, took the title of sultan and protected Islam.
This political lull occured during the reign of Yongle of the Ming. A first Chinese embassy reaches Herat in 815 AH (1412 CE). China produces porcelain decorated in Muslim taste to serve as a diplomatic gift. The second embassy in 820 AH brought many gifts including porcelain but also silks, brocades, velvets and paper. This embassy is probably the terminus post quem of the Persian books on Chinese paper.
The Chinese luxury paper is thick, and designed to be extremely soft and silky to the touch. The Chinese workshops prepare the folio on a monochrome background in various hues of blue, pink, lavender, yellow and green. They then add an illustration in gold, with speckled patterns and sometimes figurative drawings, without human representation in conformance with the iconographic principles of Islam. The Persian workshops add their text on this preparation.
A dozen Persian manuscripts on Chinese paper are known, including four Qur'ans. One of these Qur'ans, recently discovered, consists of 534 folios 23 x 16 cm, 29 of which have been replaced. The text in Naskh script is written on each page in a 14 x 9.4 cm frame. The binding is Safavid. This book is estimated £ 600K for sale by Christie's in London on April 2 (postponed to June 25), lot 29.
The Timurid empire broke out after his death. His son Shahrukh reigned over Persia and transferred the capital from Samarkand to Herat. He re-established relations with China through the silk road and became immensely wealthy. He did not seek conquests, took the title of sultan and protected Islam.
This political lull occured during the reign of Yongle of the Ming. A first Chinese embassy reaches Herat in 815 AH (1412 CE). China produces porcelain decorated in Muslim taste to serve as a diplomatic gift. The second embassy in 820 AH brought many gifts including porcelain but also silks, brocades, velvets and paper. This embassy is probably the terminus post quem of the Persian books on Chinese paper.
The Chinese luxury paper is thick, and designed to be extremely soft and silky to the touch. The Chinese workshops prepare the folio on a monochrome background in various hues of blue, pink, lavender, yellow and green. They then add an illustration in gold, with speckled patterns and sometimes figurative drawings, without human representation in conformance with the iconographic principles of Islam. The Persian workshops add their text on this preparation.
A dozen Persian manuscripts on Chinese paper are known, including four Qur'ans. One of these Qur'ans, recently discovered, consists of 534 folios 23 x 16 cm, 29 of which have been replaced. The text in Naskh script is written on each page in a 14 x 9.4 cm frame. The binding is Safavid. This book is estimated £ 600K for sale by Christie's in London on April 2 (postponed to June 25), lot 29.
1525-1535 The King disguised as a Dragon
2011 SOLD 7.4 M£ including premium
The most important works of ancient literature had a universal or encyclopaedic goal. The Iliad of Homer, Dante's Divine Comedy and the Shahnameh of Firdausi must be put on the same pedestal.
The Persian poet Firdausi wrote the Shahnameh 1000 years ago. This Book of Kings collects the epic and heroic stories of his country since the creation of the world until the advent of Islam.
He was misunderstood in his lifetime, like all geniuses, but the Persian kings realized later that this text could be used as an apologia for royal power. Ismail, founder of the Safavid dynasty, encouraged artists to illustrate the Shahnameh, but the great work was an illuminated manuscript created in the early reign of his son and successor Tahmasp.
This highly important manuscript has been dismantled. One can, or even have to, regret it but the corollary is that each folio coming on the market is considered as a work of art in its own right.
On April 6 in London, Sotheby's sells a gouache heightened with gold, 47 x 32 cm. Made in Tabriz between 1525 and 1535 of our calendar, it is attributable to Aqa Mirak who was one of the best artists of this collection. It is estimated £ 2M.
It shows the king Faridun who disguises himself as a fierce dragon to test the courage and loyalty of his three sons. He could rejoice in the result and particularly appreciate the haughty answer made by the youngest: Go your way, dragon, we are the sons of the powerful Faridun.
This work will soon be exhibited in Doha. On this occasion, it is illustrated in the upper left of the article shared by The Peninsula Qatar.
POST SALE COMMENT
Sotheby's had announced this lot for a very long time and knew its value, of course.
The result, £ 7.4 million including premium, is very high, but the above discussion indicated the trend: each sheet of Shahnameh of Tahmasp is a work of art in its own right.
I have no doubt that this price will incite other sheets to come in future sales.
The Persian poet Firdausi wrote the Shahnameh 1000 years ago. This Book of Kings collects the epic and heroic stories of his country since the creation of the world until the advent of Islam.
He was misunderstood in his lifetime, like all geniuses, but the Persian kings realized later that this text could be used as an apologia for royal power. Ismail, founder of the Safavid dynasty, encouraged artists to illustrate the Shahnameh, but the great work was an illuminated manuscript created in the early reign of his son and successor Tahmasp.
This highly important manuscript has been dismantled. One can, or even have to, regret it but the corollary is that each folio coming on the market is considered as a work of art in its own right.
On April 6 in London, Sotheby's sells a gouache heightened with gold, 47 x 32 cm. Made in Tabriz between 1525 and 1535 of our calendar, it is attributable to Aqa Mirak who was one of the best artists of this collection. It is estimated £ 2M.
It shows the king Faridun who disguises himself as a fierce dragon to test the courage and loyalty of his three sons. He could rejoice in the result and particularly appreciate the haughty answer made by the youngest: Go your way, dragon, we are the sons of the powerful Faridun.
This work will soon be exhibited in Doha. On this occasion, it is illustrated in the upper left of the article shared by The Peninsula Qatar.
POST SALE COMMENT
Sotheby's had announced this lot for a very long time and knew its value, of course.
The result, £ 7.4 million including premium, is very high, but the above discussion indicated the trend: each sheet of Shahnameh of Tahmasp is a work of art in its own right.
I have no doubt that this price will incite other sheets to come in future sales.
Celebrating 40 years of pioneering #IslamicArt at Sotheby’s https://t.co/wwDYNq8T6E pic.twitter.com/n8SIMLwc8s
— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) February 18, 2016
> 1590 Isfahan Rug
2009 SOLD for £ 2.7M by Sotheby's
On October 7, 2009, a Safavid prayer rug, 163 x 110 cm, was sold for £ 2.7M by Sotheby's from a lower estimate of £ 80K, lot 276.
1600 Silk Isfahan Rug
2008 SOLD for $ 4.45M including premium by Christie's
narrated in 2021
In 1598 CE Abbas I transfers his capital to Isfahan. The city, destroyed by the Mongols in 1387, centralizes the very ambitious cultural policy of the Shah. Everything must be done to dazzle the visitors.
On June 3, 2008, Christie's sold a Persian rug for $ 4.45M including premium from a lower estimate of $ 1M, lot 37. This 230 x 170 cm piece is entirely woven in silk without brocade. Its unique luminescence could be a witness to that rebirth of Isfahan, around 1600.
The search for luminosity is carried to perfection, with 17 colors including several shades of yellow. Its repeating pattern of flowers, leaves and plant arabesques is centered by a small medallion, an innovation that provided the illusion of a water lily floating on a pond when the colors still had all their original contrast.
The so-called "Polonaise" rugs, woven in Isfahan and Kashan, can be considered as an evolution of this design a few decades later. Unfortunately their silver brocades are often blackened by oxidation and the dyes are less stable. A 208 x 135 cm brocade silk Polonaise that had belonged to King Umberto II was sold for $ 790K including premium by Sotheby's on October 1, 2015, lot 68.
On June 3, 2008, Christie's sold a Persian rug for $ 4.45M including premium from a lower estimate of $ 1M, lot 37. This 230 x 170 cm piece is entirely woven in silk without brocade. Its unique luminescence could be a witness to that rebirth of Isfahan, around 1600.
The search for luminosity is carried to perfection, with 17 colors including several shades of yellow. Its repeating pattern of flowers, leaves and plant arabesques is centered by a small medallion, an innovation that provided the illusion of a water lily floating on a pond when the colors still had all their original contrast.
The so-called "Polonaise" rugs, woven in Isfahan and Kashan, can be considered as an evolution of this design a few decades later. Unfortunately their silver brocades are often blackened by oxidation and the dyes are less stable. A 208 x 135 cm brocade silk Polonaise that had belonged to King Umberto II was sold for $ 790K including premium by Sotheby's on October 1, 2015, lot 68.
Safavid - The Carpet of Senator Clark
2013 SOLD 34 M$ including premium
The extreme refinement of Persian carpets reached its peak under the Safavid dynasty.
One of them created one of the most exciting surprises in the history of auctions. Surfacing in Germany in October 2009, it was estimated € 900 by a local auctioneer. Christie's had a small intuition about the importance of the piece by providing an estimate of £ 200K. They sold it for £ 6.2 million including premium on April 15, 2010.
Now known as the carpet of the comtesse de Béhague, this Kirman in wool 339 x 153 cm was made with one of the more complex techniques identified as the 'vase' technique. This name is unrelated to the decorative pattern.
The carpet of Senator Clark will not create the same surprise as it has already been described for nearly a century as a masterpiece of Persian textile art. It was exhibited after the death of its owner in 1925 in a museum that de-accessions it now. It is estimated $ 5M, for sale by Sotheby's in New York on June 5. Here is the link to the catalog.
Its red background is rare and perhaps unique in its class, the sickle-leaf pattern variant of the 'vase' technique. Its fine floral motifs and its palmettes make it a vibrant and sumptuous artwork in 267 x 196 cm size.
It is always difficult to date and locate an old carpet, if not by considerations of its technical characteristics. The Clark carpet is Safavid and probably Kirman. It is comparable to the best known pieces woven during the reign of Shah Abbas 400 years ago.
POST SALE COMMENT
There is no price limit for the most outstanding art pieces. This extraordinary carpet was sold for $ 34M including premium.
I invite you to play the video shared by Sotheby's.
It is also shared by Wikimedia.
One of them created one of the most exciting surprises in the history of auctions. Surfacing in Germany in October 2009, it was estimated € 900 by a local auctioneer. Christie's had a small intuition about the importance of the piece by providing an estimate of £ 200K. They sold it for £ 6.2 million including premium on April 15, 2010.
Now known as the carpet of the comtesse de Béhague, this Kirman in wool 339 x 153 cm was made with one of the more complex techniques identified as the 'vase' technique. This name is unrelated to the decorative pattern.
The carpet of Senator Clark will not create the same surprise as it has already been described for nearly a century as a masterpiece of Persian textile art. It was exhibited after the death of its owner in 1925 in a museum that de-accessions it now. It is estimated $ 5M, for sale by Sotheby's in New York on June 5. Here is the link to the catalog.
Its red background is rare and perhaps unique in its class, the sickle-leaf pattern variant of the 'vase' technique. Its fine floral motifs and its palmettes make it a vibrant and sumptuous artwork in 267 x 196 cm size.
It is always difficult to date and locate an old carpet, if not by considerations of its technical characteristics. The Clark carpet is Safavid and probably Kirman. It is comparable to the best known pieces woven during the reign of Shah Abbas 400 years ago.
POST SALE COMMENT
There is no price limit for the most outstanding art pieces. This extraordinary carpet was sold for $ 34M including premium.
I invite you to play the video shared by Sotheby's.
It is also shared by Wikimedia.
Safavid - The Béhague Carpet
2010 SOLD for £ 6.2M including premium by Christie's
narrated in 2021
A Kirman carpet was released from anonymity on April 15, 2010 at a Christie's sale in London when it was sold for £ 6.2M including premium from a lower estimate of £ 200K, lot 100. The press revealed that it had been sold six months earlier in Augsburg from an estimate of € 800 by a local auctioneer who refused to publish the result.
This wool carpet is knotted using the intricate Vase technique, suggesting that it was woven in the royal workshops of the Safavid dynasty. It measures 339 x 153 cm and is in outstanding condition except for a few tiny repairs and some corrosion of the black threads. It had been commented in 1938 by an expert who stated for its provenance the prestigious collection of the comtesse de Béhague.
The golden age of Kirman carpets is the reign of Abbas I, who died in 1629 CE. The Béhague carpet is characterized by a very elegant simplification of shapes that Christie's positions around the mid-17th century.
In a magnificent geometric regularity, parallel stems support several pairs of leaves. From top to bottom, the leaves of one stem alternate with the leaves from the adjacent stem. Tiny flowers are inserted into the spaces between the leaves. This decoration anticipates the repetition of flowers and leaves in the highly popular Herati pattern and may evoke some figures from the Iznik ceramics.
This wool carpet is knotted using the intricate Vase technique, suggesting that it was woven in the royal workshops of the Safavid dynasty. It measures 339 x 153 cm and is in outstanding condition except for a few tiny repairs and some corrosion of the black threads. It had been commented in 1938 by an expert who stated for its provenance the prestigious collection of the comtesse de Béhague.
The golden age of Kirman carpets is the reign of Abbas I, who died in 1629 CE. The Béhague carpet is characterized by a very elegant simplification of shapes that Christie's positions around the mid-17th century.
In a magnificent geometric regularity, parallel stems support several pairs of leaves. From top to bottom, the leaves of one stem alternate with the leaves from the adjacent stem. Tiny flowers are inserted into the spaces between the leaves. This decoration anticipates the repetition of flowers and leaves in the highly popular Herati pattern and may evoke some figures from the Iznik ceramics.
Polonaise Carpet
1
2019 SOLD for £ 3.9M by Christie's
A Polonaise carpet 205 x 140 cm from Isfahan was sold for £ 3.9M by Christie's on May 2, 2019 from a lower estimate of £ 600K, lot 254.
Magic carpets narrated by Christie's in October 2021.
Magic carpets narrated by Christie's in October 2021.
2
2019 SOLD for £ 3.7M by Christie's
A Polonaise carpet 200 x 145 cm from Isfahan was sold for £ 3.7M by Christie's on May 2, 2019 from a lower estimate of £ 550K, lot 255.
Magic carpets narrated by Christie's in October 2021.
Magic carpets narrated by Christie's in October 2021.
1820s The Shah who never grew old
2014 SOLD 3 M£ including premium
The founder of the Qajar dynasty reestablished Tehran as the capital of Persia. His successor Fath 'Ali Shah developed the city and its palace.
Often in history a new dynasty enforces its authority by deploying an extreme wealth. The ceremonies of Fath 'Ali were sumptuous, decorated with the most beautiful rugs and finest gems.
The Shah wanted that his palace was decorated with pictures of himself and his family occupied in these luxurious ceremonies. These portraits were displayed lifesize like the English kings in Tudor times, and in oil on canvas, which was an innovation for Persian art.
For these reasons, the Qajar art under Fath 'Ali is unique. The name of the artist who directed this project for three decades is known : Mihr 'Ali. It is difficult to distinguish his autograph work because he had many students.
Throughout this period, the image of the Shah never gets old. He kept the huge black beard down to the belt and the mustache hiding the mouth. Only varied the luxurious details of the high crown, garment, carpet and of the wide bolster whose pattern often matched the carpet. The gaze is straight up to expressing a challenge.
On October 12, 2004, Sotheby 's sold £ 900K including premium a portrait of the Shah, 203 x 114 cm.
On April 9 in London, Sotheby's sells another canvas, 223 x 163 cm, estimated £ 1.5 M. The pentagonal shape is due to the space where the work was to be hung in the palace.
The Shah is kneeling on a carpet. He is accompanied by a standing teenager in a perfect costume, who is certainly his grandson Mohammad Mirza, eldest son of the Crown Prince and 12 years old in 1820 of our calendar.
POST SALE COMMENT
This outstanding Qajar portrait was sold for £ 3M including premium.
Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's.
Often in history a new dynasty enforces its authority by deploying an extreme wealth. The ceremonies of Fath 'Ali were sumptuous, decorated with the most beautiful rugs and finest gems.
The Shah wanted that his palace was decorated with pictures of himself and his family occupied in these luxurious ceremonies. These portraits were displayed lifesize like the English kings in Tudor times, and in oil on canvas, which was an innovation for Persian art.
For these reasons, the Qajar art under Fath 'Ali is unique. The name of the artist who directed this project for three decades is known : Mihr 'Ali. It is difficult to distinguish his autograph work because he had many students.
Throughout this period, the image of the Shah never gets old. He kept the huge black beard down to the belt and the mustache hiding the mouth. Only varied the luxurious details of the high crown, garment, carpet and of the wide bolster whose pattern often matched the carpet. The gaze is straight up to expressing a challenge.
On October 12, 2004, Sotheby 's sold £ 900K including premium a portrait of the Shah, 203 x 114 cm.
On April 9 in London, Sotheby's sells another canvas, 223 x 163 cm, estimated £ 1.5 M. The pentagonal shape is due to the space where the work was to be hung in the palace.
The Shah is kneeling on a carpet. He is accompanied by a standing teenager in a perfect costume, who is certainly his grandson Mohammad Mirza, eldest son of the Crown Prince and 12 years old in 1820 of our calendar.
POST SALE COMMENT
This outstanding Qajar portrait was sold for £ 3M including premium.
Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's.
