Master's Thesis of Ardakan Faculty of Art and Architecture
September 1393
During the Safavid period, Shah Ismail declared the Shia religion as the official religion of the Safavid dynasty. The continuity and long life of this dynasty and the strength of religious and cultural aspects strengthened and consolidated its artistic tradition. In this course of metalworking and making and penning Artifacts of gold, silver, brass and copper had large dimensions. Among the characteristics of the metal works of this period, the design and form of very bulky and heavy candlesticks in the 8th and 9th centuries of Hijri has given way to the elegance of shape and line; In Persian language, including mystical poems and the names of imams, especially the name of Hazrat Ali (pbuh) alone or with Allah and Muhammad (pbuh), prayers in praise of the twelve Imams and parts of Nad Ali's grace-filled prayers can be seen in this period. The inscriptions on their bodies are generally written in thulth, naskh, and nastaliq script. In this research, we have analyzed the candelabras and lanterns by analytical and descriptive method.
Key words: Safavid period, metalwork art, decoration, form and content, candlesticks, lanterns, lighting devices. Although in the text of Iran's history, art, especially the art of metalworking, has not been given much attention, and in this sense, the faces of many artists, especially metalworkers, have been covered in the dust of oblivion. But the remaining masterpieces are proofs of their thoughtfulness and hard work in creating precious Iranian arts. This art flourished in northeastern Iran, Khorasan and beyond. Unfortunately, due to the low melting temperature of precious metals, it is very likely that the objects made of metals were melted down and reused.
The beginning of the rebirth of metalworking after the invasion of the Mongols appeared in the west of Iran from the beginning of the 7th/13th century AD and gradually spread to the Fars region and western Khorasan until the middle of the 8th/14th century AD. found Shah Ismail was the first Iranian king who, after the death of the last Sassanid king, after eight hundred and fifty years of conquest and rule by the Arabs and Tatars, unified the country once again and a Shiite government – Iranian established He paid a lot of attention to the culture and art of Iran, and this caused Iranian styles to spread again in the arts that were influenced by the Mongolian culture of the late Timurid period. With the establishment of the Safavid dynasty, a new chapter was opened in the Iranian school of art; To the extent that the golden age of art in Iran should be considered as a parallel to the rule of this dynasty. At that time, it was popular in the society and was expanding and developing – They were inspired and applied this principle in their works and tried to use Persian script for calligraphy, for example, in silver stamping and engraving of dishes, candlestick bases, and bases for writing Persian poems, Arabic inscriptions were replaced with elegant lines. Apart from the themes of Islamic concepts such as the Quranic verses, the hadiths of the fourteen infallibles and their names were very popular due to their influence and were usually written in the form of naskh and thulth lines, and other writings of this time were written on metal works in Nastaliq script combined with flower and leaf motifs or various combinations of Islamic and geometric lines by calligraphers. In the meantime, the art of calligraphy, in addition to its decorative role, manifested the Islamic spirit, and this art played an important role in expressing the artist's tendencies and feelings.
Since there were no direct sources related to the topic of Safavid period metalwork and the study of candlesticks and lanterns of this period, it has been tried to use all the sources, including Persian books and articles, the use of the Internet, and the use of the works available in the National Museum of Iran. and the West Azerbaijan Museum have studied the metalworking art of this period and examined the decorations of the Safavid period candlesticks and lanterns.
This research includes six chapters; In the beginning, while examining the generalities of the research, its objectives have been addressed. In the second chapter, we have discussed the evolution of the art of metalwork in the Islamic period and its history in Iran, and we have given examples from different periods as much as possible. In the third chapter, to examine the decoration and inscriptions. We have examined the geology of this period and its types of metals. And in the fourth chapter, we have explained the literature of lamps and candlesticks of this period; In the fifth chapter, some examples of candlesticks and candles of the Safavid period have been examined; And finally, in the sixth chapter, we have concluded.
Anyway, just as no research is free of problems, this writing will not be complete and without problems even with all the efforts of the author. I hope professors and readers will point out the shortcomings with their guidelines to inspire the researcher in future research. InshAllah.
Chapter 1 Generalities
-1 Description of the subject
In about two centuries of Shia rule, Iran became a local government after several centuries and the elevation of all kinds of arts was provided; Safavid era metalwork continued along with other arts on the basis of old traditions and grew and flourished in the shadow of the artistic culture of the rulers. As from the works left from this era, it is a clear proof of the progress of art that was created from the mixing of different styles before the Safavids, and the work has reached its brilliant and very different position. The metalsmiths of this era replaced the rough and coarse patterns common in the Timurid and Seljuk eras by performing delicate and very small motifs. Copper and brass dishes became more popular and under the skill of the makers, quality and exquisite works were made. As a result of the expansion of Shiite beliefs and the spirit of nationalism, the use of Shiite prayers and Persian poems with Iranian lines, such as Nastaliq, found a lot of expression in the metal works of the Safavid period. Therefore, this feature of being Iranian is one of the characteristics of the products and productions of this period. It is a good reflection of the religious views of its supporters and a reflection of the comprehensive social attitude of that time, so that in this thesis, examining the collected works, one can see these effects on their form and content and their practical type. The result of this investigation, in addition to the cultural and artistic features; To show the use of materials and materials, the content of works and the use of calligraphy in Persian during the Safavid period.
1-2 statement of questions in the research
Have religious elements influenced the metal works of the Safavid period?
What were the decorative and content indicators of the metal works of the Safavid period? What were the lamps of the Safavid period like? 1-3 Objectives and importance of the research The aim of this research is to examine the changes that occurred in the decorations and form of the candlesticks and lanterns of the Safavid period; The shape and material of the works have grown to such an extent that today; They believe that the peak of Iran's metalworking arts was in the Safavid period, and the style that is common today in carving, inlaying, and penning metalwork works of art is derived from the same period. Using the Nastaliq script as a completely Iranian script One of these cases is that by studying the existing historical samples, one can find out its history in Iranian art.
1-4 research methods
Regarding the topic of the work, library sources have been used in the process of writing this thesis, and due to the lack of examples of lamps and candlesticks; Safavid era articles and museum works available in the National Museum of Iran and West Azerbaijan Museum and internet sites have been used in compiling this research; And a part of this research has been conducted in the field and interviews with museum collectors.
1-5 Background of the research
In the book Metalworking of the Seljuk and Safavid era written by Mohammad Afrogh, contrary to the expectation that comes to mind from the title of the book, the author has only repeated repeated material and has not added new material to the previous information. Even suitable images are not used and the number of images is much less than it can be examined. From the same author, there is also an article with the same title in two quarterly journals of Islamic Art Studies, number 12. It has been published and three samples of Safavid metal vessels have been discussed in it.
Of the published articles, I would like to point out an article that is closer to the research topic of this thesis in terms of content and images: the study of the themes and calligraphy of the Safavid era candlesticks and lanterns, National Museum, the author of which is Maryam Frost. In this article, three examples of candlesticks of this period and five examples of candlesticks of the Safavid period have been examined.