ArtHitParade
ArtHitParade on Twitter
  • Home
    • Contact
  • Calendar
  • Top 10
    • Origin
    • From 600 BCE to CE
    • Years 1 to 1000
    • Years 1000 to 1300
    • 14th Century
    • 15th Century >
      • Years 1400-1429
      • Years 1430-1459
      • Years 1460-1479
      • Years 1480-1499
    • 16th Century >
      • Years 1500-1519
      • Decade 1520-1529
      • Decade 1530-1539
      • Years 1540-1569
      • Years 1570-1599
    • 17th Century >
      • Decade 1600-1609
      • Decade 1610-1619
      • Decade 1620-1629
      • Decade 1630-1639
      • Decade 1640-1649
      • Decade 1650-1659
      • Years 1660-1679
      • Years 1680-1699
    • 18th Century >
      • Decade 1700-1709
      • Decade 1710-1719
      • Decade 1720-1729
      • Decade 1730-1739
      • Decade 1740-1749
      • Decade 1750-1759
      • Decade 1760-1769
      • Decade 1770-1779 >
        • 1776
      • Decade 1780-1789
      • Decade 1790-1799 >
        • 1792
    • 19th Century >
      • Decade 1800-1809
      • Decade 1810-1819
      • Decade 1820-1829
      • Decade 1830-1839
      • Decade 1840-1849
      • Decade 1850-1859
      • Decade 1860-1869
      • Decade 1870-1879
      • Decade 1880-1889 >
        • 1887
        • 1888
        • 1889
      • Decade 1890-1899 >
        • 1890
        • 1892
        • 1896
    • 20th Century >
      • Decade 1900-1909 >
        • 1903
        • 1904
        • 1905
        • 1907
        • 1908
        • 1909
      • Decade 1910-1919 >
        • 1911
        • 1912
        • 1913
        • 1914
        • 1915
        • 1916
        • 1917
        • 1918
        • 1919
      • Decade 1920-1929 >
        • 1920
        • 1921
        • 1923
        • 1924
        • 1925
        • 1926
        • 1927
        • 1928
        • 1929
      • Decade 1930-1939 >
        • 1930
        • 1931
        • 1932
        • 1933
        • 1934
        • 1935
        • 1936
        • 1937
        • 1938
        • 1939
      • Decade 1940-1949 >
        • 1941
        • 1942
        • 1945
        • 1946
        • 1947
        • 1948
        • 1949
      • Decade 1950-1959 >
        • 1950
        • 1951
        • 1952
        • 1953
        • 1954
        • 1955
        • 1956
        • 1957
        • 1958
        • 1959
      • Decade 1960-1969 >
        • 1960
        • 1961
        • 1962
        • 1963
        • 1964
        • 1965
        • 1966
        • 1967
        • 1968
        • 1969
      • Decade 1970-1979 >
        • 1970
        • 1971
        • 1972
        • 1974
        • 1975
        • 1976
        • 1977
        • 1978
        • 1979
      • Decade 1980-1989 >
        • 1980
        • 1981
        • 1982
        • 1983
        • 1984
        • 1985
        • 1986
        • 1987
        • 1988
      • Decade 1990-1999 >
        • 1990
        • 1991
        • 1992
        • 1993
        • 1994
        • 1995
        • 1996
        • 1997
        • 1998
        • 1999
    • 21st Century >
      • Decade 2000-2009 >
        • 2000
        • 2001
        • 2002
        • 2003
        • 2006
        • 2007
        • 2008
      • Decade 2010-2019 >
        • 2017
      • 2020 to now >
        • 2021
  • Current Art
  • Renaissance
  • Painting
    • Ancient Painting >
      • Oil on Copper
    • 18th Century Painting
  • Ancient Drawing
  • Art on Paper
  • Sculpture
    • Bust
    • Ancient Sculpture >
      • Roman Sculpture
    • Italian Sculpture
    • French Sculpture
    • Sculpture by Painters
  • Women Artists
    • Ancient Art by Women
    • Art by Women ca 1960
    • Current Art by Women
    • Martin
  • Furniture
    • Chairs and Seats
    • Colonial Furniture
    • Ancient French Furniture
    • 18th Century Furniture
    • Modern Furniture >
      • Art Deco
    • Modern Tables
  • Prints
    • Ancient Prints
    • Modern Prints
  • Photo
    • Old Photos >
      • Travel Photos
      • Early French Photo
    • Photos 1900-1940 >
      • Photos in the 1920s
    • Photos 1970s 1980s
    • Sherman
    • Gursky
  • The Man
  • The Woman
  • Children
  • Man and Woman
  • Groups
  • Self Portrait
    • Self Portrait 2nd page
  • Nude
  • Abstract Art
    • Abstract Art - 2nd page
  • Landscape
    • Midi
    • Alps
    • Mountains in China
  • Cities
    • Venice
    • Paris
    • Los Angeles
  • Flowers
    • Bouquet
  • Animals
    • Bird
    • Cats
    • Horse
  • Dragon
  • Tabletop
  • Early Still Life
  • Music and Dance in Art
    • Music in Old Painting
  • Sport in Art
  • Orientalism
    • Orientalism 1830-1900
  • France
    • Louis XV and XVI
    • Revolution and Empire
    • Louis XVIII to 2nd Empire
    • Ancient French Painting
    • Degas
    • Cézanne
    • Monet >
      • Monet before 1878
      • From Vétheuil to Giverny
      • London and Venice
      • Pond by Monet
    • Renoir
    • Gauguin
    • Lautrec
    • Matisse
    • Klein
    • Lalanne
    • Post War French Art
  • Italy
    • Ancient Italy >
      • Italian Painting 1280-1700
    • Canaletto
    • Modigliani
    • Fontana
  • Swiss Painting before 1940
    • Hodler
  • Giacometti
    • Giacometti 1947-53
  • Bacon
    • Bacon before 1963
    • Bacon 1963-70
    • Later Bacons
  • UK - 2nd page
    • Ancient England
    • George I to III
    • George IV to Victoria
    • British Royals
    • Turner >
      • Watercolor by Turner
    • Freud
    • Hockney
    • Doig
    • Hirst
    • Banksy
  • Germany
    • Ancient Germany
    • Richter >
      • Richter before 1983
    • Germany - 2nd page
  • Rembrandt
  • Van Gogh
  • De Kooning
  • Holland 2nd page
  • Old Flanders and Belgium
    • Flemish Art >
      • Rubens
    • Magritte
    • Tintin
    • Belgium 2nd page
  • Picasso
    • Picasso before 1907
    • Picasso 1907-1931
    • 1932 Picasso
    • Picasso later 1930s
    • Picasso 1940-1960
    • Picasso in Mougins
    • Prints by Picasso
  • Spain - 2nd page
    • Ancient Spain
    • Miro
    • Spain 3rd page
  • Klimt
  • Austria 2nd page
  • USA
    • US Independence
    • Development of USA
    • US Civil War
    • Wild West
    • US Painting before 1940
    • Rockwell
    • Calder
    • Rothko >
      • Early Rothko
      • Rothko 1957-70
    • Still
    • Pollock
    • Lichtenstein >
      • Lichtenstein after 1965
    • Warhol >
      • USA by Warhol
      • Celebrities by Warhol
      • Later Warhols
      • Prints by Warhol
    • Twombly
    • Prince
    • Koons
    • Wool
    • Basquiat
    • USA 2nd page
  • Central and South Americas
  • China
    • Archaic China >
      • Ritual Bronzes
    • Northern Song
    • Southern Song and Yuan
    • Early Ming
    • Later Ming
    • Early Qing
    • Qianlong
    • Modern China >
      • Zhang Daqian
      • Sanyu
      • Zao Wou-Ki
    • New Chinese Painting
    • Chinese Porcelain >
      • Song to Yuan Porcelain
      • Ming Porcelain
      • Qing Porcelain
    • Chinese Art
    • Chinese Calligraphy
    • Chinese Furniture
    • Jade
  • India
    • Tibet and Nepal
    • Modern India >
      • Gaitonde
  • Persia
    • Safavid Carpets
  • Yoshitomo Nara
  • Russia
    • Russia 1700-1900
    • Kandinsky
  • Eastern Europe
    • Chagall
  • Northern Europe
    • Prints by Munch
  • Egypt
  • Tropical Africa
    • Congo
    • Gabon
    • Mask
  • Tribal Oceania
    • Easter Island
  • Australia
    • Colonial Australia
  • Islam
  • Buddhism
    • Early Buddhist Sculpture
  • Judaica
  • Christianity
    • Madonna and Child
  • Cars
    • Birth of Automobile
    • Cars of the 1910s
    • Cars of the 1920s
    • Cars of the 1930s >
      • Cars 1930-33
      • Cars 1934-35
      • Cars 1936-37
      • Cars 1938-39
    • Cars 1940-50
    • Cars 1951-1959 >
      • Cars 1951-53
      • Cars 1954-55
      • Cars 1956-57
      • Cars 1958-59
    • Cars of the 1960s >
      • Cars 1960-61
      • Cars 1962-64
      • Cars 1965-67
    • Cars 1970s 1980s
    • Supercars
    • Hypercars
    • Ferrari >
      • Early Ferrari
      • From LWB to GTO >
        • California Spider
      • Ferrari after 1962
    • Alfa Romeo
    • Mercedes-Benz
    • Porsche
    • British Cars >
      • Aston Martin
      • Jaguar
      • McLaren
    • Bugatti
    • French Cars
    • Duesenberg
    • Ford and Shelby
    • Cars - 2nd page
  • Motorcycles
  • Jewels
    • White Diamond
    • Pink Diamond
    • Blue Diamond
    • African Diamonds
    • Jewels - 2nd page
    • Cartier
  • Silverware
    • Old Silverware
  • Coin
    • Gold Coins
    • Silver Coins
    • Antique Coins
    • Coins 1000-1775
    • Coins 1776-92
    • Coins 1793-99
    • Coins 1800-49
    • Coins 1850-69
    • Coins 1870-99
    • 20th century Coins
    • British Coins
    • Dollars and Eagles
    • Japanese Coins
    • Chinese Coins
  • Paper Currency
  • Medal and Decoration
  • Time Pieces
    • Clocks >
      • Old Clocks
    • Mechanical Craft ca 1800 >
      • Jaquet-Droz and Followers
    • Modern Watches
    • New Watches >
      • OnlyWatch
    • Patek Philippe >
      • Patek Philippe before 1950
      • World Time
      • Perpetual Calendar
    • Rolex
    • Watches 2nd page
    • English Time Pieces
    • French Time Pieces
  • Glass and Crystal
    • Glass before 1900
    • Tiffany Studios
  • From Terracotta to Porcelain
    • Meissen
  • Textiles
  • Garment
  • Fashion
  • Books
    • Incunabula
    • 16th Century Books
    • 17th Century Books
    • Fine Books 1700-1850
  • Literature
    • Literature in English
    • Literature in French
  • Poems and Lyrics
  • Autograph
  • Manuscript
    • Illuminated Christian Manuscript
  • Religious Texts
  • Political Writing
  • Comic Books
  • Illustrators
  • Travel
  • Space
  • Maps
  • Cars in Movies
  • Movies
  • Music
  • Musical Instrument
    • Violin >
      • Violin 2nd page
    • Guitar
    • Musical Instrument 2nd page
  • Pop Music
    • The Beatles
  • Poster
  • Sport
    • Sport Equipment
    • Sport Uniform
    • Sport Document
    • Sport Rewards and Medals
    • T206 Wagner
    • Sport Images before 1950
    • Sport Cards 1950-80
    • Modern Sport Cards
    • Baseball >
      • Baseball Bat
      • Babe Ruth
      • Lou Gehrig
    • Basketball >
      • Jordan
    • Ice Hockey
    • Sport 2nd page
    • Olympic Games
  • Origins of Sports
  • Historical Arms
    • Blade and Armour
    • Colt 1836-62
    • Later Colts
    • Winchester
    • Firearms - 2nd page
  • Toys
  • Doll
  • Games
  • Stamps
    • World Stamps
    • US Stamps
    • Inverted Jenny
  • Inventions
  • Optical Instrument
  • Sciences
    • Ancient Science
    • Sciences 1600-1800
    • Sciences from 1800
    • Astronomy
    • Physics
    • Medicine
    • Dinosaur
  • Computing
  • Nobel Medals
  • Whisky
    • Whisky 2nd page
  • Wine
  • Plus
    • Plus 1880s
    • Plus 1962-64 Warhol
    • Plus 1982 Basquiat

Mesopotamia and Persia

Except otherwise stated, all results include the premium.
​See also : Sculpture  Ancient sculpture  Islam  Religious texts  Manuscript  Textiles  Safavid carpets  Animals  Cats
Chronology : Origin  1400-1429  1530-1539  17th century  1600-1609  1650-1659

3000 BCE The Guennol Lioness
2007 SOLD for $ 57M by Sotheby's

The Guennol Lioness was sold for $ 57M 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.
Guennol Lioness
Sculpture
Ancient Sculpture
Animals
Cats
Origin

879 BCE Nimrud Palace Bas Relief

1
​​2018 SOLD for $ 31M by Christie's

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 October 31, 2018, Christie's sold a bas-relief 224 x 196 cm for $ 31M, as lot 101 . 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. The piece includes a standard cuneiform inscription mingled in the image that recalls the achievements of the king supported by the gods.

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

2
​1994 SOLD for £ 7.7M by Christie's

On July 6, 1994, Christie's sold for £ 7.7M 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.

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 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.

Read more here: https://t.co/9cQoEEVoAa#SothebysMiddleEast pic.twitter.com/lXMc1EvOxZ

— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) October 4, 2021

> 1417 Persian Manuscripts on Chinese Paper
2020 SOLD for £ 7M by Christie's

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 was sold for £ 7M from a lower estimate of £ 600K by Christie's on June 25, 2020, lot 29.
Religious Texts
Years 1400-1429

Shahnameh

1
1525-1535 Folio 42
2011 SOLD for £ 7.4M by Sotheby's

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 1,000 years ago. This Book of Kings collects in 30,000 couplets 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 appreciated later that this text could be used as an apologia for royal power. Shah Isma'il, founder of the Safavid dynasty, commissioned ca 1522 CE the leading artists of his court to illustrate the Shahnameh. That illuminated manuscript was created from 1525 to 1540 in the early reign of his son and successor Shah Tahmasp. That fully completed project includes 258 miniatures skillfully composed with combinations of bright colors..

This magnificent manuscript has been dismantled in the 1970s. 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. The format of the folios is 47 x 32 cm. Panels of text are inserted in columns in the pictures.

On April 6, 2011, Sotheby's sold for £ 7.4M from a lower estimate of £ 2M the folio 42 of the original manuscript, lot 78. The image is shared by Wikimedia.

​The miniature is a 30 x 29 cm gouache heightened with gold, made in Tabriz between 1525 and 1535 CE. It is attributable to Aqa Mirak who was one of the leading masters of the project. The reverse has a text in four columns and two headings.

It pictures 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.
FOLIO FROM THE SHAHNAMEH OF SHAH TAHMASP, ATTRIBUTED TO AQA MIRAK, CIRCA 1525-35, Sotheby,s

Celebrating 40 years of pioneering #IslamicArt at Sotheby’s https://t.co/wwDYNq8T6E pic.twitter.com/n8SIMLwc8s

— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) February 18, 2016
Manuscript
Decade 1530-1539

2
1530 Folio 451
2022 SOLD for £ 4.8M by Christie's

The miniature of the folio 451 of the Shahnameh is a 21 x 21 cm gouache heightened with silver and gold on a paper 47 x 31 cm. Painted in Tabriz ca 1530, it is attributed to Aqa Mirak assisted by Qasim bin 'Ali. The reverse has a text in four columns.

It pictures Rustam kicking away the boulder pushed by Bahman. This story is not rare in Persian iconography. Closely following the text, the challenging hero is performing a Cossack dance while handling a cup of wine and roasting his onager.

​This folio was sold for £ 4.8M from a lower estimate of £ 2.5M by Christie's on March 31, 2022, lot 41.

Christie's is delighted to announce that a rare court painting from the Shahnama of Shah Tahmasp (c.1530) and The Adolphe von Rothschild silk and metal-thread Polonaise carpet will lead the Art of the Islamic and Indian Worlds including Oriental Rugs and Carpets sale on 31 March. pic.twitter.com/kv7GtgQmxc

— Christie's (@ChristiesInc) February 22, 2022

Vase Weaving Technique
Intro

The Safavid Shahs developed to its greatest perfection the art of Persian carpet, first in Tabriz and then at Isfahan and Kirman.

Beauty and durability result from a high technical complexity whose climax is reached at Kirman. The weavers use wool and cotton in the same pieces with a wide range of dyes. The colors are dazzling and the themes with flowers, leaves and birds are charming.

The most complex weaving technique uses no less than three weft passes per knot. It is named Vase on a proposal by May Beattie in 1976.

1
The Carpet of Senator Clark
2013 SOLD for $ 34M by Sotheby's

The extreme refinement of Persian carpets reached its peak under the Safavid dynasty. Well known by the connoisseurs, the carpet of Senator Clark had 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-accessioned it. It was sold for $ 34M from a lower estimate of $ 5M by Sotheby's on June 5, 2013, lot 12.

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  pieces woven during the reign of Shah Abbas 400 years ago.

Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
The Clark 'Sickle-Leaf', vine scroll and palmette carpet, probably Kirman, 17th century
Textiles
Safavid carpets
Islam
17th Century
Decade 1600-1609

2
The Béhague Carpet
2010 SOLD for £ 6.2M by Christie's​

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 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.
Decade 1650-1659

à la Polonaise Metal Brocaded Carpet
2019 SOLD for £ 3.9M by Christie's

Since the reign of Shah Abbas, the Persian carpet was the symbol of the splendor of the new capital, Isfahan. The weaving workshops are developing new techniques that bring an unprecedented luminosity. Abbas dies in 1629 CE.

The craze is growing. The needs of the Shah come first, but the workshops in Isfahan and Kashan get permission to supply other clients when they have time. This fashion reaches Europe. To obtain the same visual effects more easily, the textiles are brocaded with silver and gilded silver. Production becomes more abundant. These rugs went out of fashion around 1700.

In the Polish section of the Universal Exhibition in Paris in 1878, Prince Czartoryski exhibits his collection of brocaded rugs. This type of carpet is henceforth referred to as "à la Polonaise". Their conservation is less good than for previous techniques because the brocades oxidized and the dyes were less stable.

​An early 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.

Possibly dated from the reign of Shah Abbas in the first quarter of the 17th century, this piece is woven with a precious silk pile enhanced by an extensive use of gold and silver in the wrapped thread.

This artwork and another carpet had belonged to the elector Augustus of Saxony who gave them in 1695 to Lothar Franz von Schönborn, prince archbishop of Mainz.

They are superbly preserved after a three century hanging on the walls of a summer palace of the Schönborn family, escaping the wear of a usual storage on the floor. This example maintains in its full beauty the original 
blue, indigo, green, peach and pale yellow dyes.

The other piece from the same provenance is a Polonaise carpet 200 x 145 cm from Isfahan. Despite their similar sizes and period, they cannot be considered as a pair. It was sold for £ 3.7M by Christie's on May 2, 2019, lot 255. This example is preserving its sumptuous red border and a high amount of silver-metal thread around the fragile silk wraps.
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.