Portrait of Sheikh Ali Mirza

This oil painting depicts Shaykh ‘Ali Mirza (b. 1211-1263 AH / 1795-1846-7 CE), ninth son of Qajar ruler Fath ‘Ali Shah (r. 1212-1250 AH / 1797-1834 CE). This portrait and those of Fath ‘Ali Shah of the same period correspond to the development of official portraiture in Iran, mainly executed as diplomatic gifts to rulers of Europe, India and Russia but which also decorated Qajar palaces like the Golestan, as stand-ins for the ruler himself in public processions. The image of masculinity takes on the symbolization of legitimacy and the manifestation of the ruler’s authority, featuring traditional elements of Persian painting while drawing from European pictorial codes the concept of a single model portrait on a life-size canvas. This painting goes in pair with a portrait of one of his brothers, Hasan ‘Ali Mirza (PA.4), both standing, wearing a crown and other royal emblems of official portraits: the lengthy beard, the stern gaze and the other luxurious regalia. This painting was certainly commissioned as a political statement before the accession of Muhammad Shah who arrested all his brothers to avoid any coup, sending them to various prisons.