THE FORTUNE TELLER BY PRINCE NOSRAT AL-DIN MIRZA SALAR ES-SALTANEH (1884-1954)
Estimate: £5,000 - £7,000
Auction: 11 December 2024 from 10:00 GMT
Description
watercolour, crayon and pencil on paper laid down on card, signed in red ink bottom centre, ‘Nosrat Z’, depicting an interior scene with a man holding a manuscript and speaking to two covered women around a table on a carpet
Dimensions
23.2cm 33.5cm
Provenance
Formerly, old Private French Collection.
Footnote
Prince Nosrat al-Din Mirza Salar es-Saltaneh was a Qajar prince and painter, the son of Nasser-al-Din Shah and princess Zina es Saltaneh, the grand-daughter of Abbas Mirza. Paintings by him are rare.
The Fortune Teller is after a well known painting by Mohammad Ghaffari, better known as Kamal-ol-Molk ('Perfection on Land'), a title bestowed upon him by Nasser-al-Din Shah when he was invited to paint at court. It is highly-likely that Prince Nosrat and Ghaffari knew one another, in addition to being of a similar age and sharing a passion for art.