From EIAH
[edit] Golestan-e Honar 10
No. 10, Winter 2008
Licence Holder: The Iranian Academy of Art
Editorial Director: Mir-Hossein Moosavi
Editor-in Chief: Mehrdad Qayyoomi (Qayyoomi@honar.ac.ir)
Editor's Assistant: Mohammadreza Rahimzadeh
Golestân-e Honar Quarterly: Vali-Asr St.,No. 1105, Tehran 1511913511, Iran
Tel.& Fax: (+9821)88728152
[edit] Craft Ethics: Adab Treatises as Resources of Iranian Art History
Mehrdad Qayyoomi
[edit] Ketabat-khaneh and Surat-khaneh
Yaghoob Azhand
The Herat style of miniature painting has three stages of development: during the reign of Timur (Tamerlane), the reign of Shahrokh, and the reign of Sultan Hossein Bayqara. Baysonqor, Shahrokh’s son who was also a prominent calligrapher and a notable artist and patron of his time, founded the Royal Library in Herat which later became the center of artistic workshops of the time.
The Baysonqor Library in Herat had two divisions: ketabat-khaneh (scribal house) for calligraphers and surat-khaneh (figural house) for painters, illustrators, and illuminators. Aside from production of illustrated books and manuscripts, historical evidence suggests that the design of architectural patterns and inscriptions were also done there. Ja’far Tabrizi (Baysonqori) headed the Library in that period.
When Sultan Hossein Bayqara came to power, the library’s activities flourished ever more, marking this era as the peak point in its history. Both the king and his cultured vizier, Amir Ali-Shir Navayi, brought to this center among the best calligraphers, painters and illuminators of their time. Aqa-Mirak Heravi was appointed as the Head of Library then. Kamal ad-Din Behzad and Sultan-Ali Mashhadi headed the surat-khaneh and ketabat-khaneh respectively. Later, Behzad and Mir-Mosavver became head of the Library.
[edit] Calligraphy in the Safavid Period
Priscilla Soucek - Translated by Valiyollah Kavoosi
By the rise of the Safavid dynasty, the practice of calligraphy in Iran had reached a high level of accomplishment. The traditions that existed defined both the formal character and the purposes of various scripts. Any individual calligrapher could and was in search of ways of contributing to the refinement of this heritage.
Besides writing manuscripts, calligraphic skills were essential also for making seals, designing coins, carving ivory or metalwork decoration. Most members of the Safavid family appreciated and studied calligraphy and patronized scribes whose calligraphic examples they collected. During the reign of Shah Esma’il and Shah Tahmasp, the calligraphic modes of Timurid Herat continued with little change and were codified. Early during Shah Tahmasp’s reign, the writing of manuscripts and later, the production of qit’ahs thrived. This period is also notable for the variety of literary sources that discuss calligraphy and calligraphers.
The scripts that were employed by Safavid calligraphers were common for generations and combined a set of six. The shape and proportion of each component letter was based on a tradition that had been laid down by Yaqut Musta’semi. The longevity of these scripts owed to the practice of the calligraphers to emulate the work of their predecessors. Apart from the six calligraphic modes, two scripts ta’liq and nasta’liq were broadly employed within the Safavid dominions. Official correspondence was executed in ta’liq, which as older documents attest was invented during the Ilkhanids. Despite the spread of ta’liq, most famous calligraphers of the Safavid period practiced in nasta’liq, which was first used for the copying of verse. However, it soon began to usurp the roles received earlier for other hands. The growing dominance of nasta’liq led to the precise definition of its forms, and several calligraphic treatises that provide instruction on forming individual letters of the alphabet were compiled. Safavid kings held a deep appreciation of the style of Sultan ‘Ali Mashhhadi. He executed with extraordinary control in nasta’liq. His pupil, Sultan Mohammad Noor, also executed skillful juxtapositions of khafi and jali nasta’liq (varieties of this script).
The enthusiasm of Shah Tahmasp for the practice of calligraphy gave high court positions to their scribes. During the early years of his rule, Tabriz was the center for calligraphers, many of whom used the modes current in Herat and eastern Iran under the Timurids. Shah Mahmud Nishapuri was one of them, who carried out for Shah Tahmasp copying of Nizami’s Khamseh and the Qur’an in nasta’liq.
Most scribes of the Safavid period also excelled at the writing of qit’ahs which were afterwards illuminated and compiled to form a muraqqa’ (album). Safavid sources often mention Mir ‘Ali Heravi as a key practitioner of this medium. He is sometimes referred to as equal in skill to Sultan ‘Ali Mashhadi. His calligraphy was later also appreciated in India.
Seyyed Ahmad Mashhadi was a pupil of Mir ‘Ali who practiced in Shah Tahmasp’s court. He was master to Mir ‘Emad Qazvini, and thus specially revered in later periods. The most prominent calligrapher of the late Shah Tahmasp rule was Malik Daylami, who followed the style of Sultan ‘Ali in nasta’liq, and had mastered the six scripts so that he was nicknamed ‘Yaqut’ of his time.
Calligraphy stood at the heart of cultural and artistic life of Safavid period. Aside from court correspondence, copying exquisite manuscripts, the scribes also engaged in writing of verses whether by others or themselves. The circulation of these works throughout Safavid Iran, India and Turkey made masterly examples available to many pupils to follow.
[edit] The Seal and Signature of Ahmad Neyrizi
Emad ed-Din Sheykh-ol-Hokamayi
A copy of the Shiraz Emamiyeh Madrasa Endowment Deed hand-written by Ahmad Neyrizi is currently preserved in the Library of Malek National Museum. This document contains valuable information on the history of calligraphy of Iran. On its right-hand-side margin there is a piece of textual evidence regarding the life of the calligrapher, which poses an exclusive significance.
[edit] A Piece of Calligraphy by Gowharshad (Mir Emad’s Daughter)
Neda Sham‘ei
There is a brilliant piece of calligraphy by Gowharshad, daughter of Mir Emad Hassani who was a prominent calligrapher in Safavid Isfahan and Qazvin, being preserved in the Decorative Arts Museum of Iran at Isfahan. This article provides an introduction on this work plus a short account of the calligrapher’s life.
[edit] Silk Road or Paper Road?
Jonathan Bloom - Translated by Fatemeh Dor-Ali
The term “silk road” in the late nineteenth century was referred to historical routes connecting China and Europe. Contrary to what it suggests, the most important product traded via these routes was paper. The Chinese had invented paper centuries before Christ, and the Central Asians improved its structure and quality. Before the early centuries of Christ, the most common form of the book was papyrus roll, while later it took the form of a codex. Another form was pairs of hinged wooden tablets with an overlay of wax. Before paper, papyrus strips in Egypt and parchment in other parts of the world was popular writing medium. Upon the conquer of Central Asia, the Muslims encountered paper for the first time and brought it to Western Asia and the Mediterranean. In the eighth century AD, with the soaring demand of the Abbasid government bureaucracy made more use of paper. Baghdad had its suq al-warraqin (stationers’ market). After the tenth century AD, paper was a key element of scientific and literary creativity throughout the Muslim lands. The Italians produced fine and inexpensive paper, yet the books in the Middle Ages were rather rare and expensive.
The Mongol conquest once again encouraged trade along the routes linking China to the West, although it is not determined if it was this that led to paper developments. Printing techniques had been used in China in the eighth century AD, and it emerged in Europe seemingly from nowhere in the fifteenth century AD. On any account, the trade route between China, West Asia, and the Mediterranean has great historical significance, and in light of the importance of materials carried along, it may be more accurately termed as the “paper road”.
[edit] Print Culture in Late Qajar Iran: The Cartoons of Kashkul
Shiva Balaghi - Translated by Davood Tabaei
The development of print culture was among significant cultural changes of the late Qajar era. The print industry entered an advanced position when Iranians adopted lithography for the production of books and newspapers. In its advent, the print culture faced the reluctance of the Islamic society because it was feared to overshadow the practice of such arts as calligraphy and the scribal trade. Through the means of lithography though, retaining the ritual construction of the page paired with the economy of print production, a mechanized means of production complying with the Iranian cultural rituals emerged. Kashkul was among the illustrated press of that time, edited by Sheykh Ahmad Majd-ol-Islam Kermani who also published Neda-ye Vatan newspaper. As he described it, Kashkul was a publication outside the confinements of proper and official literary dictates, aiming to represent ugly customs to people. Kermani believed the cartoon as a medium of social and political reform. The low rate of literacy in that time made this method introduce a lot larger audience to his newspaper. The majority of the cartoons were signed by Mirza Ali. Reading newspaper was gradually adopted in small social gatherings and soon became a collective activity in a broader sphere of readership. This new function of the press bridged the realms of orality and literacy.
In the time of the Constitutional Revolution and when the British and Russian imperial powers were moving towards officially demarcating Iran into spheres of influence, Kashkul was an important factor towards public education and nationalism. The newspaper covered implicit commentary on the corruption of the political scene, ailing state of the national army, the development of infrastructure such as the National Bank, railroads and roads, public health system, educational system, and imperial incursions against Iran’s national integrity, by all which it served its purpose of education and patriotism for the public.
[edit] Seven Spiritual Stages of Attar’s Manteq at-Teyr in Sultan Ahmad Jalayer’s Divan
Mehdi Hosseini
An illustrated manuscript of Sultan Ahmad Jalayer’s Divan (Poetic Collection) (ruled 784-813 AH), preserved in Freer Gallery of Art, Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C., depicts an important example of book illustration in the second phase of Shiraz School. These illustrations do not depict the poetic verses inside, but illustrate the scenes of the seven spiritual stages that Attar allegorizes in his Manteq at-Teyr. Abd al-Hay who was a prominent painter of the eighth century (AH) illustrated this book.
This essay first introduces the manuscript and its illustrator. Then, according to the subject of the scenes, elaborates on the Manteq at-Teyr, and likewise, the seven spiritual stages of the mystic path. Mentioning the patronage of Sultan Ahmad of artists, and the importance of his period in the development of Timurid and Turkmen schools of painting, it then explores the artistic characteristics and details in painting, and illumination appearing in the manuscript. The comparative study of the illustrations with the specifications of the seven stages in Manteq at-Teyr comprises the main body of this essay.
[edit] Book Illustration of Zafarname in Shiraz School
Giti Norouzian
A Study of Three Manuscripts of Zafarname in the 9th and 10th Century AH
Sharaf ed-Din Ali Yazdi’z Zafarname (literary: book of victories) is an important history, compiled in Timur’s era. There are many illustrated manuscripts of Zafarname, which made in Shraz during Timurid and Safavid periods. This article is attempted to study the transition of Shiraz School from Timurids period to Safavids’ during one century by considering three of these manuscripts: one belonged to the ninth century AH/ fifteenth century AD and two were made in the tenth century AH/ sixteenth century AD. The first manuscripts written in 839 AH/1436 AD is also known as Ibrahim Sultan’s Zafarname. Composed by the order of Ibrahim Sultan, the Timurid Prince, this manuscript has always attracted art historians’ attention for its special features, including 37 patterns which most of them are presented as large two-page ones. Possessing various patterns, the manuscript is a good example of Shiraz school mannerism supported by Timurids princes. The other two manuscripts written in 939 AH/1533 AD and 959 AH/1552 AD are also a manifestation of Shiraz school transition from Timurids to Safavids period. Additionally, both of them properly present the impact of capital style, namely Tabriz, on Shiraz school. Thus, it would be possible to get an implicit impression of Shiraz school in both Timurids and Safavids periods, which somehow could be categorized as a commercial style, by studying the above-mentioned scripts as well as presenting a few patterns of each.
[edit] The Trend of Artistic Changes in the Iranian Rock Reliefs
Abbas Rezaeenia
Rock reliefs play an important role in studying the Iranian art history, for they can guide us to ancient Iranians’ expressive manners, artistic techniques, and their perspectives. Lullubis created the first Iranian rock reliefs in Zagros Mountains in the third millennium BC under the influence of Mesopotamian art. Elamites continued this style and created religious scenes as well as the kings’ general audience. They have employed certain symbols such as snake and water in their rock reliefs. In addition, some reliefs created by Assyrians have been detected in the Iranian present western borders. Assyrians’ drawings are merely based on linear designs. Medes have engraved their reliefs in the margin of rock tombs. Achaemenids’ reliefs enjoy better quality in comparison with those created in the past and contain both historical and religious themes. The rock relief of Darius the Great in Behistun is the most important example which manifests the power and dignity of the King. Fineness and balance are among the observed features in Achaemenian’s rock reliefs. There have been also identified five rock reliefs belonging to Arsacids; in some of them the impact of Greek art could be traced. Comparing with the Achaemenian’s rock reliefs, the quality and fineness of rock reliefs in Arsacids's period is poor by far. Sassanid period is the flourishing time of rock reliefs in Iran. The most discovered reliefs related to this period belong to the early decades of it and are the manifestation of King’s glory and victory over his enemies as well as the connection between his power and Ahura Mazda’s. Many of the Sassanids’ rock reliefs include inscriptions. Using plaster, sometimes mixed with colour, is among the employed techniques in this period.
In the Islamic period, the rulers due to religious considerations did not welcome rock reliefs; however it was revived at Qajar period. Fath-Ali Shah has a prominent position among Qajar Kings in this regard. Probably to retrieve his reputation after being defeated by Russians and to alleviate its bitter memory in the history, he resorted to present his false power by those reliefs. Until now, nine rock reliefs pertaining to this period have been recognized that show the King's coming to the throne, his hunting, and mythological scenes. Some of these reliefs are framed by a Nasta‘liq inscription.
There are common characteristics among the reliefs throughout the history of Iran, for instance, most of them are aimed at presenting the King’s divine power by illustrating ritual scenes. Moreover, most of them are circumscribed by rectangular shape frame. Most of the inscriptions have a symbolic language and they avoid realism. In general, there is continuity among the Iranian rock reliefs throughout its long history regarding their aim, language, and techniques.
[edit] A Book in an Article: Sheila S. Blair, Book Review: The Monumental Inscription from Early Islamic Iran and Transoxiana
Mohsen Javeri
[edit] Book Review Asar-e Harat
Reviewd by Farhad Nazari