- 116
A Group of Three Calligraphies, bearing the names of Mir 'Emad & Mir' Ali, Persia, Safavid, 16th century
Estimate
4,000 - 6,000 GBP
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Description
- Ink on Paper
Persian manuscripts on paper, the larger Mir 'Ali with 4 lines of Nasta'liq script in black ink, the name written in the lower triangular corner panel, the smaller Mir 'Ali with 6 lines of Nasta'liq in black ink written diagonally, illuminated upper corner panel with polychrome flowers and interlacing split palmettes, name in the lower corner panel amid blue scrolling flowers on a hatched ground, laid down on an album page flecked with gold, the Mir 'Imad written in Nasta'liq in black ink within enjoined cloudbands against a gold ground sprinkled with blue and red flowers, mounted on an album page with outer margins filled with large leafy scrolls in gold
Condition
In generally good overall condition, a few creases to the larger calligraphy, ink strong and bold, as viewed.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."
Catalogue Note
inscriptions
No. 2 may be by the famous Nasta'liq scribe (d.circa 951 AH/1544-5 AD), considered the best Nasta'liq scribe before Mir 'Imad. He studied in Herat and spent most of his life working as a scribe of firmans and then at the Royal Library of the Timurid Sultan Husayn Bayqara, from whom he received the title 'sultani'. After the death of the Sultan in 911 AH/1505 AD, he moved from Herat to Mashad and but later returned to Herat. After the capture of Herat by the Safavid ruler Shah Isma'il, Mir 'Ali worked under the patronage of Khwaja Karim al-Din Habibullah Savaji, the Minister to the Governor of Khurasan, Sam Mirza, a brother of Shah Tahmasp.
After the Uzbek invasion of the city in 935 AH/1528-9 AD, he was taken to Bukhara by 'Ubaydullah Khan and made to work as a scribe at his court and appointed teacher of his son 'Abd al-'Aziz Khan. His recorded works include numerous manuscripts and calligraphic pages (including 61 in the famous Gulshan Album in the Gulistan Palace Library in Tehran) and are dated between 914 AH/1508-09 AD and 951 AH/1544 AD (A. Nava'i, rejal-e ketab-e habib as-siyar, Tehran, 1324 sh., pp.yj-yd; Mehdi Bayani, ahval va athar-e khosh-nevisan-e nasta'liq, vol.II, Tehran, 1346 sh., pp.493-516).
No.3 may be by 'Imad known as Mir 'Imad. He is among the most famous Nasta'liq calligraphers of the Safavid period, whose hand has since been a model for Nasta'liq scribes. He was born in Qazvin, spent sometime in Tabriz, travelled to the Ottoman lands as far as Hijaz, visited Baghdad, Damascus and Aleppo and on his return settled in Isfahan, where he entered the court of Shah 'Abbas I. It is recorded that his fame and the Shah's particular fondness for Mir 'Imad caused jealousy among other calligraphers and resulted in the rumour that he was a Sunni and his murder by the order of the Shah in 1024 AH/1615 AD. Karim-zadeh, in his book on Mir 'Imad however, questions the above account and concludes that the widespread rumour of him being murdered by the order of the Shah was a propaganda by the Ottomans against the Shi'i rulers of Iran.
Numerous examples of his hand are recorded and date between 972 AH/1564-5 AD and 1024 AH/1615 AD (Mehdi Bayani, ahval va asar-e khosh-nevisan, vol.II, Tehran, 1346 sh., pp.518-38; M.A. Karim-zadeh, The Life and Art of Mir Imad al-Hasani, London, 2001).
No. 2 may be by the famous Nasta'liq scribe (d.circa 951 AH/1544-5 AD), considered the best Nasta'liq scribe before Mir 'Imad. He studied in Herat and spent most of his life working as a scribe of firmans and then at the Royal Library of the Timurid Sultan Husayn Bayqara, from whom he received the title 'sultani'. After the death of the Sultan in 911 AH/1505 AD, he moved from Herat to Mashad and but later returned to Herat. After the capture of Herat by the Safavid ruler Shah Isma'il, Mir 'Ali worked under the patronage of Khwaja Karim al-Din Habibullah Savaji, the Minister to the Governor of Khurasan, Sam Mirza, a brother of Shah Tahmasp.
After the Uzbek invasion of the city in 935 AH/1528-9 AD, he was taken to Bukhara by 'Ubaydullah Khan and made to work as a scribe at his court and appointed teacher of his son 'Abd al-'Aziz Khan. His recorded works include numerous manuscripts and calligraphic pages (including 61 in the famous Gulshan Album in the Gulistan Palace Library in Tehran) and are dated between 914 AH/1508-09 AD and 951 AH/1544 AD (A. Nava'i, rejal-e ketab-e habib as-siyar, Tehran, 1324 sh., pp.yj-yd; Mehdi Bayani, ahval va athar-e khosh-nevisan-e nasta'liq, vol.II, Tehran, 1346 sh., pp.493-516).
No.3 may be by 'Imad known as Mir 'Imad. He is among the most famous Nasta'liq calligraphers of the Safavid period, whose hand has since been a model for Nasta'liq scribes. He was born in Qazvin, spent sometime in Tabriz, travelled to the Ottoman lands as far as Hijaz, visited Baghdad, Damascus and Aleppo and on his return settled in Isfahan, where he entered the court of Shah 'Abbas I. It is recorded that his fame and the Shah's particular fondness for Mir 'Imad caused jealousy among other calligraphers and resulted in the rumour that he was a Sunni and his murder by the order of the Shah in 1024 AH/1615 AD. Karim-zadeh, in his book on Mir 'Imad however, questions the above account and concludes that the widespread rumour of him being murdered by the order of the Shah was a propaganda by the Ottomans against the Shi'i rulers of Iran.
Numerous examples of his hand are recorded and date between 972 AH/1564-5 AD and 1024 AH/1615 AD (Mehdi Bayani, ahval va asar-e khosh-nevisan, vol.II, Tehran, 1346 sh., pp.518-38; M.A. Karim-zadeh, The Life and Art of Mir Imad al-Hasani, London, 2001).