The Artists royal patrons and the evolution of Persian miniature from Ilkhanate to the Middle Safavid period

From the middle of the reign of the Ilkhans to the middle of the Safavid era, Iranian miniature painting gradually flourished. In spite of many political changes that happened in this interval, including the change of governments, the quality and value of this art not only did not decrease, but it also gained more validity. In this case, several factors were impressive. Among them, the most important one was the role of royal Art patrons; Therefore, the problem of this research is the type and degree of royal art patron’s familiarity with the arts related to the book design, especially miniature painting, and also the impact rate of this familiriaty on the evolution of Persian painting. With the aim of making clear how familiar the royal patrons were with their contemporary arts. The study period of this research is from the reign of the Ilkhans to the end of the Safavid dynasty, and its geographical scope is the world of Persianate culture regardless of its geographical boundaries. The reports and historical evidences remained from these periods show that the important Manuscripts of these periods were not only formed with the financial support of royal patrons, but behind them were also the patrons, some of whom were master artists and some were artists and experts in all kinds of arts. As a result, together with their artists, they could advance the artistic evolution of their time. Therefore, it can be said that one of the most important and influential variables in Persian miniature painting’s evolution is the significant role of court patrons, their knowledge about various arts related to the book design and also their skill in some branches of art such as painting.