SAFAVID ISFAHAN, IRAN, SECOND HALF 17TH CENTURY

The handsome young man in our painting is depicted in a relaxed pose, propped up on his elbow, leaning against cushions, and gazing a burn marks on his arm. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries administering love burns (dagh) on your partner was a sign of a lover’s sincerity and devotion. A painting signed and dated by Afzal al-Husayni, a student of Reza ‘Abbasi, depicts such a scene (Spirit and Life. Masterpieces of Islamic Art from the Aga Khan Museum Collection, Geneva, 2007, p.157, no.124). Reclining youths, such as ours, are a rare subject in contrast to the numerous contemporaneous portraits of seated or standing figures. The fine face of our youth resembles in style the work of the artist Mu’in Musavvir, for example a painting of a loving couple and servant exhibited in Treasures of Islam, Geneva, 1985, p.124, no.95. It is likely that our painting dates to a similar period.

A related portrait of a reclining youth, attributed to Muhammad Qasim, sold in these Rooms, 25 October 2018, lot 103. As in our painting, the background there was decorated with gold highlighted foliage and plants, typical of Reza ‘Abbasi and his followers.