English: A portrait of Mirza 'Ali Asghar Khan (Amin al-Mulk al-Sultan, Atabeg-i Azam), signed by Isma’il Jalayir, Persia, Qajar, circa 1880

Ouache on paper Painting: 66.5 by 51cm. With frame: 87 by 70.5cm.

Gouache on paper, varnished, laid down on canvas, signed at left ‘raqimihi al-haqir Isma’il al-musavvir al-k[atib] 12?’

The portrait is of Mirza Ali Asghar Khan, a politician and courtier who, during the 1870s and 1880s, became progressively more powerful until he controlled most of the government offices and was the Shah’s closest advisor. He is depicted here in a patterned woollen coat with a sashand medal of state and holding a cane in his hands. He is sitting on a European-style chair, which however, is heavily carved and ornamented in a Persian manner (the face of a Persian maiden is just visible behind the sitter’s right shoulder). On the floor is a floral carpet and around him in the room are two low circular tables bearing trays of fruit, glass decanters, a dish and bowl and what appears to be a qalamdan. Two vases of flowers are placed in front of him. Behind him is a window-frame on which are painted a variety of abstract and figurative designs. Along the horizontal sill are repeating floral patterns and on the vertical frames are animals, birds and human beings as follows: (downwards from the top)

The painting is signed on the window-sill at the far left. The signature is as follows:

raqimihi al-haqir Isma’il al-musavvir al-k[atib] 12?

'its draughtsman the poor Isma’il the painter, the scribe 12..'

The final part of the word al-katib and the final two digits of the date have been damaged and only partially repaired, leaving us to guess at the exact date of execution. The first two digits of the date are certainly 1 and 2, so the date must have been no later than 1299 AH/1881 AD. Given the timing of Mirza Ali Asghar’s career developments it is unlikely to have been executed before 1875 (see below for biography of the sitter).

Isma’il Jalayir was the son of Haki Muhammad Zaman Khan Jalayir of Khurasan. He was one of the most gifted artists and teachers at the School of Arts of the Dar al-Funun, the academy established in Tehran in 1851 by Nasir al-Din Shah (the School of Arts was established in 1861), but it is likely that he was known as a painter before he entered the Dar. Jalayir’s individualistic manner is known to have caught the eye of Nasir al-Din Shah, with whom he was a favourite, and other senior figures in the Qajar court. By 1862-63 he had produced a portrait of the ruler and was to continue his royal association throughout his career. His patronage by the all-powerful vizier Mirza Ali Asghar Khan seems to have come about in an unusual way. It is said that Jalayir was a perfectionist and was often dissatisfied with the final result of his endeavours. Apparently he was in the habit of taking a long and thoughtful examination of his finished works and, if they did not satisfy his high personal standards, he would tear them up or destroy them in some way. Mirza Ali Asghar heard about this habit and invited Jalayir to his house, indicating that the artist was welcome to come and go, enjoying the peace and protection that a senior courtier’s residence afforded. At the same time, he ordered his servants to watch Jalayir very carefully, and as soon as he began to examine his completed work in a certain way the servants were to take the work away and hide it. In this way Mirza Ali Asghar is said to have saved several pieces. In this context it is not surprising that Jalayir would have painted a portrait of Mirza Ali Asghar during his visits.

Jalayir’s style was unique. Both his portraits and his calligraphic works are marked by a charming and almost surreal contrast between large-scale forms in the foreground (i.e. the sitter or the calligraphy itself) and the microscopic world of the background, which was inhabited by strange animals, birds, flowers, trees, fruit, human beings (shepherds, hunters, ladies of the harem, children), buildings, townscapes and abstract patterning. This combination of the real and the unreal, the microscopic detail and the broad sweep, creates an other-worldly, almost hallucinatory atmosphere in some of his works. B.W. Robinson summed up his style succinctly:

“…His style was meticulous, thoroughly Europeanised on the surface, but fundamentally Persian, and tinged with a sort of gentle melancholy”. (Robinson 1991, p.887).

the sitter

Mirza Ali Asghar Khan was the son of Aqa Muhammad Ibrahim Amin al-Sultan and was born in Tehran in 1858. At the age of fifteen he joined his father’s staff and in 1871 both he and his father were among Nasir al-Din Shah’s entourage during his pilgrimage to ‘atabat. On his return to Tehran Mirza Ali Asghar was promoted to sarhang and given command of the royal mounted escort. In 1873-74 he succeeded his father as saheh-e jam (head of the royal transport) and in 1878, while still only 20 years old, he deputised for his father in all the relevant offices of state while the latter was away in Europe with the Shah. In 1881 he was given the title Amin al-Mulk, and in 1883 he inherited his father’s title Amin al-Sultan and his functions. He continued his career as the Grand Vizier in the late 1880s and served Nasir al-Din Shah until his death in 1896, being responsible in large part for the calm transition of power to Muzaffar al-Din Shah.

As mentioned above, the partial date on the portrait of ’12..’ means that it must have been painted at the latest in 1299 (1881-2). This particular year saw Mirza Ali Asghar’s promotion to Amin al-Mulk, and it is possible that he commissioned the present portrait from Jalayir in celebration of this event.