A View of The Ka'aba and surrounding buildings in Mecca, Ascribed to the painter Mahmud (d.1311 AH/1893-4 AD), Persia, 2nd half 19th century

inscriptions

There are traces of a note in the bottom left hand corner which indicate that the painting belonged to Prince Farhad Mirza (d.1305 AH/1887-8 AD). A colophon in the bottom right hand corner ascribes the work to the famous Qajar painter Mahmud Malik Al-Shu'ra', noting also its commission by Farhad Mirza Mutamid al-Dawla. There are traces beneath of a former colophon which may have been damaged, hence the re-inscribing. The patron Farhad Mirza (d.1305 AH/1887-8 AD) was the son of 'Abbas Mirza Na'ib al-Saltana and the painter, Mahmud. It seems likely that Farhad Mirza acquired the painting on his pilgrimage to Mecca in 1293 AH/1876-7 AD.

Reliable early views of Mecca fall into two small groups, Ottoman views in oils and engraved views, of which there are only a handful. Only one makes any attempt to depict anything other than the holy shrine itself. This is the view engraved in Mouradja d'Ohsson's three volume folio, entitled 'Tableau de l'Empire Ottoman' (Paris 1787-1790). This work contained a double engraving after a drawing by Nicolas de L'Epinass, a noted but unexceptional topographical artist. His source remains obscure as he certainly was not an eyewitness. Burckhardt commenting on this engraving decades later was highly critical of its accuracy. Views of the ka'aba do of course appear in Islamic prayer books, and on tiles but these are for the most part unreliably schematic.

The present painting can be compared to other works of Mahmud including two architectural paintings in the Gulistan Palace Museum, Tehran, both published in M.A. Karimzadeh Tabrizi, The Lives and Art of Old Painters of Iran, Vol.3, Sidcup, p.1522, no.36 & 36A. Both of these works, dated 1281 AH/1864 AD and 1286 AH/1869 AD respectively, share with the present painting similar features such as the treatment of the trees and clouds, as well as some architectural elements. A similar colour palette is also evident, with the painting at hand displaying the same vivid blue as in the above examples. For further information on these paintings and the artist Mahmud, see Tabrizi, op.cit., pp.1124-1133.

This picture can also be compared to a panoramic view of Mecca in the Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art, London. Executed circa 1845 by the Delhi cartographer Muhammad 'Abdallah, this watercolour depiction of Mecca is remarkable for its accuracy and represents the earliest known eyewitness record of the city (see J.M. Rogers, The Arts of Islam, Sydney, 2007, pp.260-1, no.298). Both the Khalili painting and the present work provide a view of the historical architecture of Mecca representing as it does a moment frozen in time. With the advent of the modern age nearly all the historical buildings have been replaced with state-of-the-art schools, hospitals and hotels to accommodate the millions of pilgrims visiting the city each year.