A ruler, probably Shah 'Abbas II, receiving an ambassador, Qajar Persia, circa 1880

A ruler, probably Shah 'Abbas II, receiving an ambassador
Qajar Persia, circa 1880
Gouache and gold on paper, panel at upper centre with identifying inscription in naskhi script in white, the painting laid down on an album page with inner borders of panels of Persian poetry in nasta'liq script excised from a manuscript of the 16th-17th Century, outer borders with floral motifs in gold. painting 22.6 x 14.4 cm, album page 37.5 x 27.7 cm

Apparently modelled in part on a mural in the Chihil Sutun Palace, Isfahan, depicting Shah 'Abbas II receiving an Uzbek ambassador. The identifying inscription reads: al-Sultan Shah 'Abbas [and] Akbar ibn Humayun, though the scene does not appear to feature Akbar or any other Indian figure.