A SIGNED ZAND LACQUERED PAPIER-MÂCHÉ MIRROR CASE
Post-Safavid Iran, dated 1167 AH (1753 - 1754 AD) and signed by Muhammad 'Ali Ashraf

Of octagonal shape, polychrome-painted, heightened with gold and lacquered, the front and back decorated with dense floral triumphs showcasing a great variety of flowers, lush foliage, and wild berries including large roses, hyacinths, two-tone frilled tulips, carnations, and small daisies, the outer decorative frames with stylised vegetal scrollwork and a floral frieze of rosettes in gold on black grounds, the interior of the cover featuring three cusped cartouches in-filled with more flowers and the typical Persian topos of the rose and nightingale (gol-o-bolbol) on black, all set against a vibrant, gold-sprinkled amber red ground, the exterior of the cover signed and dated in gold in the middle to the right The Work of the Humblest 'Ali Ashraf 1167 AH (1753 - 1754 AD), 17.2cm x 14cm.

The shape, decorative theme, and style of this mirror case can be attributed to the renowned 18th-century Zand painter, Muhammad 'Ali Ashraf. Considered one of the foremost artists of the post-Safavid generation, he is particularly celebrated for his dense and elegant floral triumphs and gol-o-bolbol designs, as showcased in this lot. The naturalism and fine draughtsmanship of the flowers drawn on our case, all easily identifiable thanks to their precise characterisation, act as witnesses to this master's talent. Two similar octagonal mirror cases presenting his signature and dated respectively 1152 AH (1739 - 1740 AD) and 1165 AH (1751 - 1752 AD) belong to well-established institutions such as the Brooklyn Museum (acc. no. 88.92) and the Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art. For further reference on each of them, please see Maryam Ekhtiar, ‘Muhammad Isma'il Isfahani: Master Lacquer painter’, Sheila Blair (ed.), Persian Masters, Five Centuries of Painting, 1990, pl.1, pp.190 - 191; and N.D. Khalili, B.W. Robinson, and T. Stanley, Lacquer of the Islamic Lands, The Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art, Part One, Vol. XXII, 1996, cat.65, pp.97 – 98. On these mirror cases, Ashraf's takhallos (pen name) is Huwa! Zi ba‘d-i Muhammad ‘Ali ashraf-ast (He! After Muhammad ‘Ali is the most noble). Our lot, instead, features Raqam-e Kamtarin 'Ali Ashraf (The Work of the Humblest 'Ali Ashraf) and it appears to be his only recorded work signed in this manner. Another comparable example was successfully sold at Christie's London, 20 October 2016, lot 63.

Dimensions: 17.2cm x 14cm