A PORTRAIT OF FATH 'ALI SHAH QAJAR, 19TH CENTURY

Gouache pigments heightened with gold on paper, depicting a roundel enclosing a half portrait of Fath Ali Shah, with rounded and full face, long mustache attached to a very long beard, wearing a long dress with long sleeves, light blue silk and embossed with gilt floral motifs. The Shah wears an ingeniously desgined crown studded with precious jewels and a dagger adorned with jewels and attached to a belt on the waist. All ruled in borders stylised with gold and striking blue decoration. The upper psrt with Persian inscription of Sultan Fath Ali Shah Qajar in nastaliq script amongst gilt floral scrolls on a red ground.red. Signed by Muhammad Hasan Afshar Urumieh, enjoyed a remarkably long career (1818-78) that spanned the reigns of three rulers: Fath ‘Ali Shah, Muhammad Shah and Nasir al-Din Shah. The style of his renowned portraits evolved throughout his career, from a traditional style favoured in the court of Fath ‘Ali Shah, to the European influence. This influence arose from European artworks entering Iran as a result of increased travel among the elite between the two regions. Miniature: 21 by 16 cm. Folio: 28.5 by 18.5 cm.

CATALOGUE NOTE Fath Ali Shah was the second Shah of Qajar dynasty in Iran. He reigned from 1797 until his death. His reign saw the irrevocable ceding of Iran’s northern territories in the Caucasus, to the Russian Empire following the Russo-Persian Wars of 1804–1813 and 1826–1828 and the resulting treaties of Gulistan and Turkmenchay.