MINIATURE PORTRAIT OF NASIR AL-DIN SHAH QAJAR, SIGNED BY ABU'L HASAN GHAFFARI, PERSIA, CIRCA 1855, BESTOWED ON THE BRITISH CHARGE D'AFFAIRES CHARLES MURRAY

Royal Persian Paintings: The Qajar Epoch - 1785-1925 Brunei Gallery of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, 1999

Raby J, Qajar Portraits, Azimuth Editions 1999, no.105, p.29

This fine miniature presents the Nasir al-Din Shah Qajar in accordance with the European conventions that were slowly becoming assimilated into Persian art and culture at the Shah's encouragement. Where once the background would have been fully developed, and his imperial presence would have been highlighted by the richness of his robes, his stance and the grand scale in which he was painted, here the Shah has chosen a different mode of approach. The background is plain and understated and the Shah wears military regalia, replacing the jewelled robes and weaponry of earlier portraits. Whilst the scale of the miniature may not impress to the same extent as large, full sized portraits it is easily transported and displayed. This ability to display, and the act of bestowing a small gift may be as influential and as politically loaded a message as the gifting of monumental portraits; especially when the gift is put into its political context.

Charles Augustus Murray was the British Charges d'Affaires during the political upheavals of the mid 1800s and the Crimean war that so damaged relations between Persia and Great Britain. Further strain was placed on the British legation by the Prime Minister under Nasir al-Din Shah: Aqa Khan, and the appointment of one of the Prime Minister's enemies to a post with the British delegation in Shiraz. The controversial appointment led to accusations by Aqa Khan that impugned Charles Murray's moral conduct, and the political episode developed into a major situation involving the Shah, his Harem, the Prime Minister and the entire British legation. Eventually Murray's righteous outrage led to the withdrawal of the British from Persia and the severance of relations between the two countries in Rabi' al-Awwal 1272/November 1855 (The Cambridge History of Iran, vol vii, p.394). It is possible therefore that this miniature was given to Murray in a gesture of reconciliation, or merely as a memento of his time in Persia and the cloud under which he departed. Either way, the Englishman returned to Tehran in May 1857 when relations were restored.

The artist Abu'l Hasan Ghaffari was one of the foremost masters of the Qajar court, his European training held him in good stead in the increasingly Europeanised court of Nasir al-Din Shah. Apprenticed to the celebrated Mihr 'Ali at a young age, Abu'l Hasan was then sent to France and Italy to study the Renaissance masters. On his return to Persia, the artist was honoured with the title of painter laureate in 1850, shortly before he painted this miniature, and then Sani' al-Mulk in 1861. He is known not only for his exquisite miniatures, but also for his large scale portraits that incorporate the technical skills and attention to detail required by miniature painting (see Diba and Ekhtiar 1998, p.241-242, cat.74).