Without in any way wanting to minimise the recent tragedies in Japan, I could only be reminded of the 2003 earthquake in Bam, which caused such destruction in the historic citadel as well as killing around 30,000 people there. A 3 minute UNESCO film and, even better, a 5 minute Jadid Online film gives a …
Professor Sheila Blair was the speaker at the 2011 Yarshater lectures. She discussed four objects – a dish; a rose-water sprinkler; an enormous building; and a pair of carpets. These, she said, were “signals from the past”, as well as each having different resonances now. While Professor Blair was speaking, I couldn’t help but be …
To add to the other work on this site about Iranian crafts and craftsmen; this posting is about some old windmills – vertical-axis windmills, just like the world’s very oldest. On 1 Nov 644, the caliph Omar is reputed to have asked a Persian slave, Abū Lo’lo’a, about a boast he had made that he …
Some of the tiles on the dome of the Masjid-e Shah in Isfahan have recently been reported to be ‘creeping’ downwards. I recently realised that this is what is visible in a photo I took of the dome in spring 2008. Until now, I confess that I had thought it was a fault in my …
Siavash queried the architectural origins of the Chini-kana, in one of his (thankyou, Siavash!) interesting comments. I thought I’d add a note about this, drawing on AH Morton’s very helpful paper, “The Ardabīl Shrine in the Reign of Shāh Ṭahmāsp I”. Iran Vol. 12 (1974), pp. 31-64 AHM reports that ME Weaver, a UNESCO consultant …
Some of you may already have noticed that UNESCO inscribed the Sheikh Safi al-din Khānegāh and Shrine Ensemble in Ardabil on its World Heritage list on 31 July 2010. In the citation, it was described as a “rare ensemble of medieval Islamic architecture”; incorporating a route to reach the shrine of Sheikh Safi “divided into …
I’ve already talked about the Uzbeks returning a looted diamond to Shah Abbas, and the jewels Abbas gifted to Jahangir. Here’s another posting on jewels – this time in the current Iranian collection. When I visited this several years ago, I was lucky enough to be shown round by the Director himself. Pressing my nose …
This week, you need to click the links to see the pictures, please. Don’t miss out on the 1 metre high golden globe with over 51 thousand gemstones (at the bottom of the page)! I wrote previously about the diamond Shah Abbas recognised when it was returned by refugee Uzbek princes in 1601; and the …
This week was Sotheby’s spring Islamic Sale. For me, the most interesting – if perhaps not the most beautiful – was the dated ‘black-ring’ dish. Amidst the mountain of Safavid-era ceramics that still exist worldwide, only a very (very!) few are dated. Of the 8 dated dishes known, 7 are in the so-called ‘black-ring’ style. …
Shortly after the New Year celebrations for 1601, Iskandar Munshi describes how some refugee Uzbek princes reached Shah Abbas’ court in Isfahan. Abbas welcomed them with a reception and “a cash grant of one thousand Iraqi toman in gold, to cover their living expenses”. The princes reciprocated, with “their modest gifts” including a valuable diamond …