A monumental portrait of Nasir al-Din Shah Qajar, signed by Said Hussein Mirza, Persia, late 19th century

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Ex-private collection, U.K., thence by descent.

Nasir al-Din Shah was an active patron of the arts. During his reign, the influence of European artistic conventions advanced upon the more traditional Persian aesthetic as painters were trained in Western techniques at Western academies. Portraits of Nasir al-Din Shah such as this one indicate the changing artistic and social conventions of the late nineteenth century and the influence of photography in Qajar portraiture. 

Nasir al-Din Shah was the subject of frequent depictions in oil, watercolour, and enamel during his reign between 1848 and 1896. A watercolour portrait of Nasir al-Din Shah, signed by his court artist Abu'l Hassan Ghaffari and dated 1274 AH/1857 AD, was sold in these rooms, 18 April 2007, lot 29. More recently, a related portrait was sold, 10 June 2020, lot 64.