A FINE KIRMAN MASHA'IR CARPET

BY MUHAMMAD IBN. JA'FAR, SOUTH-EAST PERSIA, CIRCA 1910

Details

A FINE KIRMAN MASHA'IR CARPET
BY MUHAMMAD IBN. JA'FAR, SOUTH-EAST PERSIA, CIRCA 1910
The field divided into three horizontal registers depicting over one hundred of the most famous characters in the history of Persia, from Gayumars, the mythical first king, to Ahmad Shah, the last of the Qajar kings, arranged in two large groups amongst architecture, the later rulers depicted in their own niches below, the centre with signature, in an ivory border of flowering vine around portrait roundels depicting further Persian monarchs of the pre-Islamic period between indigo stripes of arabesques around nasta'liq inscriptions divided by rosettes, and millefleurs designs around small identificatory inscription cartouches, ends complete, minimal wear, minor stains
12ft. x 8ft.9in. (366cm. x 266cm.)

Provenance

Sir Herbert Smith, Witley Court, Worcs.
Included in the sale of the contents of the house, 27 September 1938, lot 970, ill. pl.60.
Sir Herbert Smith, born in Kidderminster in 1872, made his fortune in the machine-made carpet manufacturing trade, setting up the conglomerate Carpet Trades Ltd in 1920, the same year that he bought Witley Court.

Lot Essay

The inscriptions in the inner border state that this depicts the portraits of the kings of Iran from the beginning to today and includes the names of dynasties from Pishandiyan to Qajar. The cartouches in the outer border includes the names of Persian kings starting with Gayumars and ending with Muhammad 'Ali Shah Qajar. Each cartouche has a reference number which is repeated next to the appropriate king.

A carpet woven from the same cartoon was sold at Sotheby Parke Bernet, New York, 16 December 1978, lot 94.

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