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The Art of the Safavids before 1600

Attributed to Sultan Muhammad: Shahnama (Book of Kings) of Shah Tahmasp Jug [Afghanistan (probably Herat)] Carpet [Iran] Velvet fragment [Iran] Kashan carpet [Iranian; Attributed to Kashan, Iran] Attributed to Mirza cAli: A Princely Hawking Party in the Mountains Habib Allah: A Stallion [Iranian; Attributed to Iran] Habib Allah: The Assembly of the Birds: Page from a manuscript of the Mantiq al-tair (The Language of the Birds) of Farid al-Din cAttar Bookbinding: From a manuscript of the Mantiq al-tair (The Language of the Birds) of Farid al-Din cAttar [Iran (Isfahan)]


Isfahan, general view of Maydan-i Shah (Royal square).

Isfahan, Royal Square, planned and laid out 1590–95
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In the early sixteenth century, Iran was united under the rule of the Safavid dynasty (1501–1722), the greatest dynasty to emerge from Iran in the Islamic period. The Safavids descended from a long line of Sufi shaikhs who maintained their headquarters at Ardabil, in northwestern Iran. In their rise to power, they were supported by Turkman tribesmen known as the Qizilbash, or red heads, on account of their distinctive red caps. By 1501, Ismacil Safavi and his Qizilbash warriors wrested control of Azerbaijan from the Aq Quyunlu, and in the same year Ismacil was crowned in Tabriz as the first Safavid shah (r. 1501–24). Upon his accession, Shici Islam became the official religion of the new Safavid state, which as yet consisted only of Azerbaijan. But within ten years, all of Iran was brought under Safavid dominion. However, throughout the sixteenth century, two powerful neighbors, the Shaibanids to the east and the Ottomans to the west (both orthodox Sunni states), threatened the Safavid empire.

In the arts, manuscript illustration was prominent in royal patronage. Ismacil's son, Tahmasp (r. 1524–76), who had been trained in painting at an early age, was an active patron of the arts of the book. Artists from the Qara Quyunlu, Aq Quyunlu, and Timurid court studios were brought together and their work helped form a new Safavid style of painting. One of the most renowned manuscripts from the period is a now-dispersed copy of the Shahnama epic (1970.301.2). Drawing inspiration from designs generated in the royal painting workshop, textiles and carpets were manufactured of luxury materials as furnishings for the court. In architecture, the Safavids commissioned mosques, mausolea, and palace complexes, restored major shrines, and contributed to sites of veneration and pilgrimage. Though Shah Ismacil is known to have built throughout the empire, only modest buildings survive from his reign. Text references and scattered remains indicate that Shah Tahmasp also sponsored numerous building projects, particularly at Qazvin, his capital after 1555, but little survives.

The most distinguished of Safavid rulers and the greatest patron of the arts was Shah cAbbas (r. 1587–1629). His reign was recognized as a period of military and political reform as well as of cultural florescence. It was in large measure due to cAbbas' reforms that the Safavid forces were able finally to defeat the Ottoman army in the early seventeenth century. The reorganization of the state and the ultimate elimination of the powerful Qizilbash, a group that continued to threaten the authority of the throne, brought stability to the empire. In 1597–98, Shah cAbbas transferred his capital to Isfahan, in southern Iran, where he built a new city alongside the old one. The centerpiece of his capital was the new Maidan-i Shah (Royal Square), which was conceived and constructed initially for state ceremonies and sports. Over the next several decades, major monuments would be erected on three sides of the Royal Square by cAbbas and his successors. Shah cAbbas encouraged trade with Europe, silk being Iran's main export. Carpets and textiles were also important export items, and these were produced in workshops set up under state patronage in Isfahan and other cities. The art of painting continued to flourish, with single-page paintings and drawings becoming more popular than manuscript illustration. Artistic and architectural developments under Shah cAbbas continued into the early seventeenth century.


Islamic World, Religious Art, Islam, West Asia, Iran, Trade and Travel (1400-1600 A.D.), Mirza cAli (Iranian, active ca. 1525-75), Sultan Muhammad (Iranian, active first half of 16th century), Habib Allah (Iranian, active second half of 16th century), Islamic Art in the Medieval Period, Islamic Art in the Later Period

Department of Islamic Art

The Age of Süleyman "the Magnificent", Birth of Islam, The Arts of Iran, 1600-1800, The Nature of Islamic Art, The Ottoman Empire before 1600 A.D., The Timurid Period, Shah 'Abbas and the Arts of Isfahan, The Arts of Iran, 1600-1800, Islamic Arms and Armor, Abridged List of Rulers: Islamic World, Ilkhanid Period,

Anatolia and the Caucasus, 1400-1600 A.D., Balkan Peninsula, 1400-1600 A.D., Iran, 1400-1600 A.D., Iran, 1600-1800 A.D., Iraq, 1400-1600 A.D., South Asia, 1600-1800 A.D., South Asia, 1400-1600 A.D.,

West Asia, 1000-1400 A.D., West Asia, 1400-1600 A.D.