نشریه مطالعات تطبیقی هنر
پیاپی 20 (پاییز و زمستان 1399)

Among the Jamiʿ al-Tawarikh manuscripts produced in the Rabʿ-i Rashidi, four copies have survived: one in Arabic and three in Persian. A century after their transcription, all these manuscripts were in the possession of the Timurid ruler, Shahrukh. Since these manuscripts were incomplete, Shahrukh ordered Hafiz-i Abru to complete the Persian copies. In the process of completion of one of these codices, considerable changes were made both in the text and the images. Since the Timurids were staunch followers of Sunnism of the Hanafite school of jurisprudence, the study of their manipulation in the section on the early Islamic history would have been of great significance. This investigation, which is a result of the examination of the original manuscripts held in the Topkapı Palace Library, was conducted with the application of comparative and codicological methods. In a textual examination, it explains the importance of codicological studies of the manuscripts, their life history and migrations for the process of their edition. This paper also compares the images added to these codices in the Ilkhanid and Timurid periods. The main questions are as follows: To what extent has Hafiz-i Abru manipulated the text of the Jamiʿ al-Tawarikh? Among the images of the Rashidun Caliphs, which caliph was more important to the Timurids and why? Some evidence shows that the recent printed edition of the Jamiʿ al-Tawarikh is in fact Hafiz-i Abru’s Majmaʿ al-Tawarikh that has been mistakenly identified as Rashid al-Din’s work. As a result, it can be stated that in the manuscripts completed by Hafiz-i Abru, there is a certain emphasis on Abu Bakr. This is evident in Hafiz-i Abru’s manipulation of the text, as well as in the images depicting the Rashidun Caliphs.

Persian painting has been influenced by European art since the Safavid era, resulting in a painting style that became known as Farangi-sazi. Although some of the engravings used in the Farangi-Sazi have been identified in recent years, it seems that research has neglected visual distortion caused due to transferring images and printmaking process up to now. Most sources and studies on Farangi-Sazi have focused on Western art and cultural influence and to lesser extent on European painters at Safavid court. This article, adopting theories of Ernst Gombrich and Kendall Walton, analyzes the process of influence and effects of imported prints on Iranian painting by looking at three works in Farangi-sazi style as samples. The research, by using a descriptive-analytical method, seeks to answer whether some of the features of Farangi-sazi can be attributed to the transfer of painterly image via reproductive pictures. First, by using Walton’s ideas, three Frangi-sazi paintings and their source gravures, distortion in perception of genre besides the effects of losing data on perception of execution techniques are analyzed. Then, by using Ernst Gombrich’s method, appropriation and matching from European painting focusing on schema, technique, color, scale, contrast, style and ornamental designs have been examined. The result of this study suggests that encounters with European images from different periods, popular to high art, combined with unfamiliarity with Western painting genres, styles and history may have impaired the understanding of Western art. Furthermore, after distortion in some data during printmaking, Iranian artists have combined or substituted those items with elements of Iranian painting.

During the Seljuk Period, Iran witnessed a socio-political stability which resulted in the expansion of various art forms including metal and glassware. The production of utility metal dishes with a good quality received high importance. The geographical, chronological and practical overlap of these utensils led to various similarities in form and motif of metal and glassware in the Seljuk period. The main purpose of this research is to study the application of artistic-visual patterns like form and motif in two applied works with different materials of this period. The main research question seeks to find the similarities and differences in the “form” and “motifs” of Seljuk metal and glassware. Thus, the purpose of this study is to, first of all, identify the general features of forms and motifs in Seljuk metal and glassware, then, to compare the structure of the forms and motifs of these works in order to identify the similarities and differences, and, finally, to expand the theoretical knowledge about art in the Seljuk period. This research takes a qualitative approach to analytically describe the data which included 30 samples (15 metal and 15 glassware) in a purposive sampling technique adopting library research and document analysis. The results indicated the form of metal and glassware followed a totally similar pattern and share similar details. The existence of motifs such as geometric chains, Arabesque, Palmette, Hexagonal flower, peacock and rabbit in both metal and glass works reveals their mutual influence from similar patterns. The most obvious similarity is the existence of benediction phrases for the object holder in Kufic script. The differences in the variety of motifs and forms such as color and transparency may be due the natural and mechanical characteristics of the materials used.

In the present paper, attempts have been made to find the differences and identify the functions of representation and objectives of producers of the works through a comparative study of two paintings with the same subject from the Ottoman and Mughal illustrated historical manuscripts. The approach of new cultural history, especially Peter Burke’s views on the common patterns of “representation of the other”, forms the theoretical framework of the research. According to the theme of the paintings, which is related to the diplomatic relations of Iran during the Safavid dynasty with its neighbors, the images will be examined and analyzed in relation to their contemporary political relations and events. Based on this, the present study seeks to answer the following two main questions:1- How was the exposure pattern of the Mughals and the Ottomans with the Safavids as the other?2-What was the political function of the representations in the Ottomans and Mughals visual chronology? The purpose of this study was to find the meaningful relations between how and function of representation the Safavids in political-cultural systems which works of art were its product and then, answer the reason of representations. Findings suggest that representation of the Safavids in Ottomans and Mughals visual chronology are performed differently in similarly themed paintings; and different aspects of this political event have been emphasized. Mughals chose the pattern of analogy and adaptation at the other side Ottomans select the pattern of Othering and opposition. The reason for these choices goes back to the function that these representations had for the Ottomans and the Mughals. The nature of this research is historical according to the subject of the research, which is the study of events in the past, and the research method is based on how the research is conducted, analytical-comparative and case study. The method of data collection is library research and the method of sampling is purposeful, non-random, and selectively based on the content of the images.

Herat and Cairo were two important Islamic cities in the Middle East, from the seventh to the ninth century AH. Cairo was the capital city of the Mamluks and Herat was the capital city of the Timurid government in Iran. In this paper, the construction of important urban monuments and buildings in the two main arteries, Herat Street (southern part of it) and Cairo’s Qasabeh Street, was examined. The purpose of this investigation is to evaluate and analyze the similarities and structural differences in these two important urban arteries and, as a result, to understand the effects of each one on the other. The main research question raised in this study is what similarities and differences do the two constructions built by the Herat Street and Qasabeh Street have? This study is an analytical-historical research one and the data were gathered based on library research based on two main resources. The data were also compared with other less-important resources. The results of this research indicated that the memorial complexes in Qasabeh Street and the southern part of Herat Street had some similarities.‏ In most of these constructions, with public and religious uses, architectural complexes, alongside the tomb of the creator of the complex, were all built along the street. The layout of these complexes along the route, in addition to decorating the city walls, made these streets look like Mazar Street (khiyaban-Mazar). It should also be noted that, in the comparison between two streets, there was an urban order in the way the buildings were constructed along Herat Street. Overall, based on the findings of this study, it could be concluded that in the seventh to tenth centuries AH, a type of urban axis design was common in the Middle East in which the type of installation and use of buildings in the direction of the axis was considered.

The painters of Tahmasbi Shahnameh, in order to depict the text full of the story of Shahnameh, tried to convey emotions and excitement to the audience by using the visual language of the hand. Due to the multiplicity of applications of this type of nonverbal communication in different situations, the painter may have undergone changes in parts of her painting under the influence of various factors, such as court order, which is not consistent with the text of the story. The main question in this article was: In presenting the message of the story through the visual language of the hand, what descriptions and shapes have the painters of Shahnameh Tahmasebi chosen to display the text with hand gestures, and how faithful they have been to the text of the book in this way? And the sub-question of the article is: why in some paintings the visual language of “hand” is exaggerated? The main purpose of this research is to identify the painting skills of Tahmasbi Shahnameh artists in using visual hand language and their level of attention to the text. Understanding the creativity in past Iranian painting doubles the importance of this research. This research has been done in a descriptive analytical way, an analysis based on the application of data and based on the images in the Shahnameh through library resources. The results of the study showed that the painters of Tahmasebi’s Shahnameh used hand movements in their paintings to show the emotional scenes of the story, such as victory and defeat, sorrow and regret, dance, surprise and waiting and in this way, they try to arouse the emotions of the reader to get her involved in emotional issues. They have creatively used non-verbal communication to display the text and have succeeded in representing the story and part of the culture of their time. They used it in emotions and repetition in their paintings, and in this way, they presented another part of the ritual of their period in the form of showing the correlation between poetry and painting.