Iran and Persian culture

The anonymous figure depicted in this painting embodies the fashion of Isfahan, Iran’s capital city under the rule of Shah ?Abbas I (1571–1629). Inter...

This portrait shows Shah ?Abbas I (1571 –1629) of Iran. His head is wreathed in a halo as he stands in the foreground before a landscape. Shah ?Abbas ...

The Khur area of Iran is a very important source of agates with many different kinds of structures and inclusions. This light blue agate is approximately 5.1 cm.

These voluminous trousers are of a type worn by women in some of the Zoroastrian communities in Iran. Fine blue cotton that can be easily gathered has been used to form the upper part of the garment, and it reappears at the bottom of each leg, where it is gathered into a narrow cuff at the ankle. In between a strong blue cotton has been used that is coarser and more hardwearing, but less suitable for gathering. Coloured strips of fine cotton embroidered with a lace-like pattern in red and white and in red and black have been sewn together and then attached to the coarse cotton legs. The seams between the strips have been disguised by red or black silk threads that have been laid along them and stitched in place with white silk through both thicknesses of fabric. The small rosettes within the lace pattern were also embroidered through both thicknesses. Strips of block-printed cotton have been used on the inside of each leg, partly because printing was cheaper than embroidery and that part of the trousers would not been seen. Also, the inner leg is subjected to much wear and tear and printed fabric would have been cheaper to replace. If you look at the black strip to the right of the printed one, you will see that a patch of plain black cotton has been sewn on top of the lower part because the lower part of the embroidery has worn thin and has torn in places.

This jar comes from the western part of the Achaemenid Empire. It is inscribed with the words 'Xerxes Great King' in Old Persian, Elamite, Babylonian ...

The 'Big Three', Franklin D Roosevelt, Winston Churchill and Joseph Stalin, sit together at a dinner party held in the Victorian Drawing Room of the British Legation, Tehran, in Iran, to mark Winston Churchill's 69th birthday on 30th November 1943.

This gemstone is a spinel, a stone gemmologically similar to a ruby. It is inscribed with the titles of the Mughal emperors Jahangir (r.1605-1627), Shah Jahan (r.1628-1658) and Alamgir (r.1658-1707), who is usually known in the West by the name Aurangzeb. It was bequeathed to the V&A in 1922 by Julia Mary, Lady Carew. Information supplied by her family stated that it had been bought by a relative in Tehran before 1870.

This painting is part of a group purchased by the Victoria and Albert Museum in 1876. At the time, it was described as being, "From the Shah's palace at Tehran." The painting may well have been removed from a palace erected by Fath 'Ali Shah (reigned 1797-1834). His residences were often decorated with series of oil paintings in this style, which were built into the walls. The individual paintings are usually portraits of a single, large human figure. The shapes of the figures are flattened out, but there is a great deal of decorative detail. Many of the series painted for Fath 'Ali Shah show imaginary portraits of members of a royal harem. In this example, a woman offers a plate of sweets. Painting in oils was introduced to Iran after 1600, when the country had strong commercial links with Europe. Production shrank during the troubled period after the Afghan invasion of Iran in 1722. It burst back into life under the Qajar dynasty, who re-united the country in the 1780s and 1790s. Fath 'Ali Shah was the second ruler of this dynasty, and his patronage led to this revival of oil painting.

This painting is part of a group purchased by the Victoria and Albert Museum in 1876. At the time, it was described as being, "From the Shah's palace at Tehran." The painting may well have been removed from a palace erected by Fath 'Ali Shah (reigned 1797-1834). His residences were often decorated with series of oil paintings in this style, which were built into the walls. The individual paintings are usually portraits of a single, large human figure. The shapes of the figures are flattened out, but there is a great deal of decorative detail. Many of the series painted for Fath 'Ali Shah show imaginary portraits of members of a royal harem. In this case, she is accompanied by a child. Painting in oils was introduced to Iran after 1600, when the country had strong commercial links with Europe. Production shrank during the troubled period after the Afghan invasion of Iran in 1722. It burst back into life under the Qajar dynasty, who re-united the country in the 1780s and 1790s. Fath 'Ali Shah was the second ruler of this dynasty, and his patronage led to this revival of oil painting.

This is a rare representation of a Persian horseman. He wears the short Iranian sword known as an akinakes . This implies an Achaemenid date, since su...

Political Personalities: Half length portrait of Queen Fawzieh, first wife of Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlevi of Iran, in Teheran.

Indian riflemen guarding an oil refinery on the island of Aradian in Iran, 4 September 1941.

This fine steel peacock may have decorated the cross-bar of an c alam , a standard carried during religious festivals in Iran. One of the most import...

The Parthians were an Iranian nomadic tribe who lived south-east of the Caspian Sea in the third century BC. They gradually conquered Iran and Mesopot...

The painting may well have been removed from a palace erected during the reign of Fath 'Ali Shah, who ruled Iran between 1797 and 1834. His residences were often decorated with series of oil paintings in this style, which were built into the walls. The individual paintings are usually portraits of a single, large human figure. The shapes of the figures are flattened out, but there is a great deal of decorative detail. Many of the series painted for Fath 'Ali Shah show imaginary portraits of members of a royal harem. In this case, a woman is shown dancing. Painting in oils was introduced to Iran after 1600, when the country had strong commercial links with Europe. Production shrank during the troubled period after the Afghan invasion of Iran in 1722. It burst back into life under the Qajar dynasty, who re-united the country in the 1780s and 1790s. Fath 'Ali Shah was the second ruler of this dynasty, and his patronage led to this revival of oil painting.

This portrait shows Shah ?Abbas I (1571–1618) at the peak of his powers, having ruled Iran for 31 years. It is one of only two complete contemporary p...

The design of this carpet is composed mainly of motifs characteristic of carpets made in Iran during the rule of the Safavid dynasty (1501-1722). From about 1500 designers in Iran developed a style that depicted figures and symmetrical floral scrollwork designs set with fantastic blossoms, as shown here. The wolves at the top, however, are unusual.