PORTRAIT OF MU'IZZ AL-MULKPERSIAN OR TURKISH ARTIST IN THE DECCAN, CENTRAL INDIA, 17TH CENTURYPORTRAIT OF MU'IZZ AL-MULKPERSIAN OR TURKISH ARTIST IN THE DECCAN, CENTRAL INDIA, 17TH CENTURYOpaque pigments heightened with gold on paper, identificatory inscription in black nasta'liq, set between gold ruled and cropped pink margin, the reverse plainPainting 6 1/2 x 3 1/4in. (16.5 x 8.3cm.); folio 6 7/8 x 3 5/8in. (17.5 x 9.1cm.)Inscriptions:Mir Mu'izz al-MulkAlice Heeramaneck has attributed this fine portrait to a Turkish artist in the Deccan although notes that it is “most unusual and difficult to identify” (Masterpieces of Indian Painting from the former Collections of Nasli M. Heeramaneck, University of Michigan, 1984, p.160). Certainly the face is Turkic looking but the fine gold brocaded coat with elegant ogival design appears akin to Ottoman or Safavid textile design. A similar textile in gold and silver thread was donated to the shrine of Imam Ali at Najaf by Shah 'Abbas (r. 1587-1629), a fragment of which is in the Museum of Islamic Art, Qatar (illustrated J. Thompson, Silk: 13th to 18th centuries, Doha, 2004, no.9, pp.44-45). The slight red outline is a feature which seems characteristic of Turkish painting traditions, however the turban appears closer to Deccani and early 17th century Safavid examples. The green undergarment, with fine gold floral decoration, and similarly designed blue trousers have also been suggested as Turkish (op.cit.) but could well also have Safavid or Mughal origins. Finally, he is clutching a European shaped sword. If anything, what this painting perhaps highlights is the fluid movement of people and goods in the Islamic world of this period and the difficulties this creates in assigning attributions today. The inscription gives the name Mir Mu'izz al-Mulk. It has been suggested that bold vertical inscriptions such as this are sometimes in the hand of the emperor and we find a man of this name who served the Mughal Emperor Akbar. He is depicted in the Akbarnama serving as emissary to the Uzbek rebel Bahadur Khan (Victoria & Albert Museum, IS.2:96-1896). Although the Mu'izz al-Mulk in that painting is less finely dressed than the figure in the present lot, certainly the facial features are similar and the stubble in our portrait could well give way to the beard seen on the face of Muizz al-Mulk in the Akbarnama illustration. The unusually characterful portrait of the present lot points towards a contemporaneous painting by somebody who knew Mu'izz al-Mulk. In fact the green robe in our painting is also similar to the one worn by the man kneeling beside Bahadur Khan, which might well be his brother 'Ali Quli Khan.细节 PORTRAIT OF MUIZZ AL-MULKPERSIAN OR TURKISH ARTIST IN THE DECCAN, CENTRAL INDIA, 17TH CENTURYOpaque pigments heightened with gold on paper, identificatory inscription in black nastaliq, set between gold ruled and cropped pink margin, the reverse plainPainting 6 1/2 x 3 1/4in. (16.5 x 8.3cm.); folio 6 7/8 x 3 5/8in. (17.5 x 9.1cm.) 出版 J. Bautze in C.P. Haase, J. Kröger, U. Lienert, Morgenländische Pracht, Edition Stemmen, Hamburg 1993, pl.187a.A. Heeramaneck, Masterpieces of Indian Painting formerly in the Nasli M. Heeramaneck Collections, Verona, 1984, pl.192. 展览 Islamische Kunst aus deutschen Privatbesitz, Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe, Hamburg,18 June - 22 August 1993.