"Musician & Dancer" from Qajar Persia | 18th-century Tile

This unique tile was made in Tehran in the Qajar era (1796-1925); when the city became the capital of Persia/Iran.

The 18th-century tile is now kept at the Art Institute of Chicago. The museum holds a large collection of Persian art in its Asian Gallery, including the carpets, coins, tiles, paintings, etc.

According to the Encyclopaedia Iranica "The Qajar period is now increasingly recognized as a time of significant change in Persian society. Perhaps the most obvious influence was the impact of Western ideas and technology, which accompanied the diplomats, military and technical advisers, merchants, travelers, and missionaries who flocked into 19th-century Persia."

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Rare Portrait of Ahmad Shah Qajar, King of Persia

A rare portrait of Ahmad Shah Qajar, king of Persia, by Seyyed Hossein Arjangi (aka Mir Mossavar).

1910 / oil on canvas.

Currently, the painting is kept in a private collection in Europe.

Ahmad Shah (1898-1930) was only 11 when he came to the throne. This portrait which may have been made from a photograph, was intended to give the child a proud, imperial bearing. But in actual fact he had little power.

Ahmad Shah was the first constitutional monarch of Persia (Iran). In 1921 his war minister Reza Khan fomented a coup and later founded the Pahlavi dynasty.


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