QAJAR IRAN, 19TH CENTURY

Details

A GOLD-OVERLAID STEEL HELMET (KULAH KHUD)
QAJAR IRAN, 19TH CENTURY
The steel skull overlaid with a pricked gold scrolling vine motif, the rim with cartouches containing gold-overlaid Persian poetry in nasta‘liq, with en-suite nasal bar, plume holders and spike, long camail of small butted rings
8 ¼in. (20.8cm.) diam; 10 ¼in. (26cm.) tall without nasal bar

Provenance

Anon sale, Christie’s London, 18 June 2009, lot 1

Engraved

Around the rim, ‘This inlaid helmet on the head of the brave hero Is more beautiful than a mighty king’s crown or a Caesar’s diadem It is made of steel and set with gold and silver It is adorned with stars like the Eighth heaven It is a Leo flying around that which is most worthy This royal-winged, auspicious one, riding a piebald steed In short, on the head of that fortunate sultan This helmet is like the sun that rises over the head of the mountain'

Further Details

Some countries prohibit or restrict the purchase and/or import of Iranian-origin property. Bidders must familiarise themselves with any laws or shipping restrictions that apply to them before bidding on these lots. For example, the USA prohibits dealings in and import of Iranian-origin “works of conventional craftsmanship” (such as carpets, textiles, decorative objects, and scientific instruments) without an appropriate licence. Christie’s has a general OFAC licence which, subject to compliance with certain conditions, would enable a buyer to import certain lots of this type into the USA. If you intend to use Christie’s licence, please contact us for further information before you bid

Conditions of sale

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Lot Essay

The poetic inscription found here is a popular one on helmets of the period. It appears on no fewer than eight helmets in the Wallace Collection, London (OA1436, OA1438, OA1474, OA1485, OA1490, OA2253, OA2284, OA2336; Thom Richardson and Paula Turner (eds.), The Wallace Collection Catalogue of Arms & Armour from Asia, Africa and the Ottoman World, London, 2026, pp.258-9, 262, 264, 267, 269, 277). One of these helmets is part of an armour set also containing a vambrace and shield, the latter bearing an inscription stating it was made during the reign of Fath ‘Ali Shah Qajar (r.1797-1834). Largely made obsolete on the battlefield by firearms, such armour sets were used for devotional practices during the ten days leading up to ‘Ashura, commemorating the death of the Shi‘i Imam Husayn.

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