Tile panel
Tile Panel
1887-1888 (made)
1887-1888 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Each of the ten large octagonal tiles is a window into the world of Persian poetry. Several depict events in the life of Yusuf, the Biblical Joseph. Others show heroes from the Persian national epic (the Shahnamah), the famous lovers Laila and Majnun, and scenes of hunting and feasting. The smaller tiles in the ensemble are decorated with flowers and depictions of architecture.
The scenes are probably based on contemporaneous lithographed editions of classic Iranian poetry and literature. The artists depict the heroes dressed in a hybrid of Sassanian and Qajar costumes, set within Europeanized borders.
The scenes are probably based on contemporaneous lithographed editions of classic Iranian poetry and literature. The artists depict the heroes dressed in a hybrid of Sassanian and Qajar costumes, set within Europeanized borders.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 57 parts.
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| Title | Tile panel |
| Materials and techniques | Fritware, underglaze painted in polycrhrome pigment:cobalt blue, green, turquoise, yellow, pink and sepia, outlined in fine black lines under a clear colourless glaze. |
| Brief description | Middle East, Ceramic, Tile; Tile panel composed of 57 octagonal, square, lozenge or raised border tiles, moulded glazed fritware, with ten scenes of the ancient kings of Iran, inscribed in Persian with their names, four idealised urban scenes, and floral compositions, workshop of `Ali Muhammad Isfahani, Tehran, Iran, 1888 |
| Physical description | The large panel of 57 fritware tiles, each with a raised moulded border, is composed of two rows of five octagonal tiles all containing narrative scenes from Iranian literature. Between them is a row of alternating square tiles with landscapes featuring architecture and elongated hexagons with an oval medallion containing a bouquet of roses. These are framed with a continuous border of narrow rectangular tiles. The tiles are The tiles are painted with a border palmettes and scrolling foliage. The octagonal tiles contain the following scenes from left to right, top to bottom: 1 Firdowsi's Shahnameh: Rustam in combat with the White Div 2 Nizami's Khusraw and Shirin: Shirin and her female attendant on horseback racing to meet Farhad at Mount Bisitun 3 Firdowsi's Shahnameh: Rustam lassoes the Khagan of China, who is riding an elephant 4 A Leopard Hunt 5 Jami's Yusuf and Zulaikha: Yusuf's brother throws him into the well 6 Firdowsi's Shahnameh: Bahram Gur hunting with Azade, a slave girl 7 Social gathering with musicians 8 Jami's Yusuf and Zulaikha:Yusuf meets his brothers 9 Nizami's Leyla and Majnun: Laila meets Majnun in the desert 10 Jami's Yusuf and Zulaikha: Yusuf on horse back meets Zulaikha |
| Dimensions |
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| Style | |
| Gallery label | Each of the ten large octagonal tiles is a window into the world of Persian poetry. Several depict events in the life of Yusuf, the Biblical Joseph. Others show heroes from the Persian national epic (the Shahnama), the famous lovers Laila and Majnun, and scenes of hunting and feasting. The smaller tiles in the ensemble are decorated with flowers and depictions of architecture.(12/03) |
| Object history | Purchased by Colonel Robert Murdoch Smith from Ali Muhammad Isfahani, for £9 1s 9p. Major-General Sir Robert Murdoch Smith (1835-1900) was based in Iran, as Director of the Persian Telegraph Department from 1865 to 1888. The Murdoch Smith Archive Reference File (MA/I/S2325 Part 8) contains a pencil sketch of the plan of their layout. |
| Association | |
| Summary | Each of the ten large octagonal tiles is a window into the world of Persian poetry. Several depict events in the life of Yusuf, the Biblical Joseph. Others show heroes from the Persian national epic (the Shahnamah), the famous lovers Laila and Majnun, and scenes of hunting and feasting. The smaller tiles in the ensemble are decorated with flowers and depictions of architecture. The scenes are probably based on contemporaneous lithographed editions of classic Iranian poetry and literature. The artists depict the heroes dressed in a hybrid of Sassanian and Qajar costumes, set within Europeanized borders. |
| Bibliographic reference | Moya Carey, Persian Art. Collecting the Arts of Iran for the V&A, London, 2017, p.166. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 561:1 to 57-1888 |
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| Record created | August 7, 2003 |
| Record URL |
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