Representative image from an independent shop or archive, not a photograph of the listed object. The seller, price, date, materials, provenance and documentation described on this page have not been verified against the pictured item. Colour varies between screens.
Illuminated Album Page
A contemporary album page in the Isfahan manner: a garden scene with a gilded border and ruled frame. Described here as new work, with no claim to historic origin.
- Craft
- Persian miniature
- Region
- Isfahan
- Technique
- Tazhib illumination
- Materials
- Sized paper, mineral pigments, shell gold
- Dimensions
- 32 × 22 cm
- Weight
- 0.1 kg
- Date
- 2024
Condition
New, unused
Provenance
Painted by the seller. Contemporary work, not a historic page.
Documentation
Signed and dated by the artist.
This is illustrative sample documentation, not evidence for the pictured object. No seller or object claim has been independently verified. The archive does not certify authenticity.
Care
Follow the preservation guidance in the Persian miniature entry: light, humidity and physical support matter more than cleaning.
About Persian miniature
Definition
Persian painting of this kind was an art of the book, produced in ateliers where calligrapher, painter, illuminator, gilder and binder each contributed. Space is organised by overlapping planes and raised ground lines; figures are scaled by role rather than distance.
History
Distinct schools are conventionally identified at Tabriz, Shiraz, Herat and later Isfahan, each with recognisable conventions of palette, figure type and landscape. Attribution to a named painter is possible for a small number of artists and remains contested for many well-known works.
Materials
Sized and burnished paper, mineral and organic pigments bound in gum, gold leaf and shell gold, and brushes made from a few hairs. Lapis-based blue and verdigris green behave very differently over time, which affects how a page reads today.
General background on the craft, not a statement about any individual object; dates and attributions summarise common positions in the literature and remain under review. Read the full Persian miniature entry.
Checklist before buying Persian miniature
Inspect
- Under magnification, hand-painted work shows brushstrokes; prints show dot patterns.
- Gold on genuine illumination is applied by hand and catches the light unevenly.
- Check the paper: handmade paper has an irregular texture and edges.
Red flags
- 'Giclée', 'art print' or 'reproduction' in the listing.
- Paintings on photo paper.
- Old-looking pages with modern printed text.
Ask the seller
- Is this an original or a print?
- Who is the artist, and is it signed?
- What pigments and paper were used?
