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Rectangular mirror case with painting of figures on terrace

This rectangular case consists of a mirror surrounded by a yellow frame with a botanical pattern. A lid sits within the frame. The lid is painted with a scene of four seated women and one standing woman. All wear richly embroidered clothing and gold chains on their heads. They are gathered on an outdoor terrace. Another figure at foreground center dances while the women near them hold instruments. The back of the case shows the same figures in another similar scene. The back of the mirror is painted with a black-and-gold botanical pattern.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
2014.389
Title
Mirror Case with Women Entertained on a Terrace
Classification
Mirrors
Work Type
mirror case
Date
c. 1850-1900
Places
Creation Place: Middle East, Iran
Period
Qajar period
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/351905

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Opaque watercolor, gold-colored pigments, and lacquer on pasteboard
Dimensions
frame: 23.2 × 15.6 × 1.4 cm (9 1/8 × 6 1/8 × 9/16 in.)
lid: 20 × 12.2 × 0.3 cm (7 7/8 × 4 13/16 × 1/8 in.)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Ezzat-Malek Soudavar, Geneva, Switzerland (by 2014), by descent; to her son Abolala Soudavar, Houston, Texas (2014), gift; to Harvard Art Museums, 2014.

Note:
Ezzat-Malek Soudavar (1913-2014) formed this collection over a period of sixty years. She purchased the works of art on the international art market.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of A. Soudavar in memory of his mother Ezzat-Malek Soudavar
Accession Year
2014
Object Number
2014.389
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
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Descriptions

Description
Rectangular mirror case with fitted lid. The outer faces depict women entertained by musicians on a well-appointed porch with red drapes and distant views of trees. On the inner face of the lid, a gold arabesque is painted on a black background.

Publication History

  • Massumeh Farhad and Mary McWilliams, ed., A Collector’s Passion: Ezzat-Malek Soudavar and Persian Lacquer, Harvard Art Museums and Freer/Sackler Galleries, Smithsonian Institution (Cambridge, MA/Washington, D.C., 2017), p. 114, cat. 45

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu