Battle of Karbala

Battle of Karbala

Religious paintings such as this one exemplify the continuity and vitality of the tradition of monumental painting as it was reinterpreted for a popular audience during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. These narrative paintings belong to a group commonly referred to as qahvehkhāneh, or "coffeehouse" paintings.

The subject represented lies at the heart of the Shi'ite belief. The Karbala tragedy commemorates the martyrdom of Imam Husayn at the hands of the Sunni caliph Yazid in the Karbala desert (seventy miles from Kufa in present-day Iraq) on the tenth of the month of Muharram, A.H. 61 (October 10, A.D. 680). The reenactment of Husayn's martyrdom at Karbala provided the impetus for the emergence of the ta'zīeh, the indigenous drama of Iran. Recent scholarship has firmly established the binding relationship between ta'zīeh performances and Karbala narrative painting. These canvases can thus be viewed as visual analogues to the ta'zīeh theatrical performances, used as pardehs (curtains, or portable paintings used as backdrops) to recitations of the Karbala tragedy. The pardehdār (reciter) would nail the painting on a wall of a given building, whether a caravanserai, a takīeh (structure built for ta'zīeh performances), or a local coffee house, and point to each relevant event as he told the story of Husayn's martyrdom.

As in most Karbala narrative paintings, this work depicts individual episodes from the battle of Karbala, as well as scenes from the life of Iman Husayn. The episodes are arranged from left to right somewhat haphazardly, in a composition with little logical progression. The focal point of the narrative is a scene in which 'Abbas (Husayn's half brother and standard bearer), mounted on a white horse, brutally stabs one of the members of Yazid's army. The wounded party is depicted as an ugly thug, whose phallic-shaped tongue protrudes from his open mouth. On the right, images of the underworld are portrayed below corresponding images of paradise. Husayn and his followers are represented in the paradise scenes, while the supporters of Yazid are included in the images of hell. The scenes depicting the underworld feature a grotesque representation of Husayn's murderer emerging from the mouth of an octopus-like creature. The conflict of dualities and the triumph of good over evil or justice over tyranny constitute the underlying message of the painting.

The upper left corner of the canvas represents Husayn riding in front of the woman's encampment, bidding farewell while holding a thirsty infant 'Ali Asghar in his right arm. To the left of this image, he is portrayed comforting the wounded Qasim (son of his elder brother). All these scenes express the agonies suffered by Husayn and his followers during the course of the battle as they were cut off from water and died. The emotional power of the drama depicted lies in the audience's involvement with the events they witness.

There are distinct stylistic variations among Karbala narrative paintings. With its minute details and extensive use of metallic embellishings in the haloes and details of costume, this painting by the early twentieth-century Isfahan painter 'Abdallah Musavvar, is decoratively appealing and jewel-like. The two-dimensional quality, which echoes manuscript illustrations of earlier periods, and the complete absence of emotion or suggestion of the harsh realities of the gory battle contribute to its decorative effect. This lavish canvas was probably commissioned by a wealthy patron, perhaps a merchant, who was able to afford such luxurious materials.

Maryam Ekhtiar in [Diba and Ekhtiar 1998]

Battle of Karbala

Monumental canvases (parda) depicting the battle of Karbala are very rare, with only two or three in museum and private collections outside Iran. A defining moment in Shi'i history and identity, the battle took place in the scorching Karbala desert in A.D. 680 and resulted in the martyrdom of Imam Husain (the Prophet's grandson) and his family at the hands of the Sunni caliph Yazid's troops. Canvases like this example served as backdrops to recitations (naqqali) of this tragic story. The reciter would pin the painting on the side of a building or the wall of a coffee house and recount the agonies suffered by Husain and his family while pointing to the relevant scene on the canvas. The narrative unfolds from left to right; it begins with Husain's early life, culminates (at the center) with an image of the two opponents in a fierce battle, and ends with depictions of Husain ascending to paradise while Yazid's soldier descends to hell, where he is devoured by a grotesque sea monster.

Maryam Ekhtiar in [MMA2021, Part II]

Signature: In nasta' liq script, under horse's hind legs: amal-i Abdallah Musavvar

Fereydoun Hoveyda, Clifton, VA (until 1989); sale, Habsburg, Feldman, New York, October 25, 1989, no. 66 (to Heller); [ Leila Heller, New York; 1989–2019; sold to MMA]

Los Angeles County Museum of Art. "In the Fields of Empty Days: The Intersection of Past and Present in Iranian Art," May 6, 2018–September 9, 2018, no. 92.

Chelkowski, Peter J. "Narrative Painting and Painting Recitation in Qajar Iran." Muqarnas vol. VI (1989). p. 100, ill. fig. 2 (b/w).

"The Regency Hotel, New York, October 25, 1989." In Fine Islamic, Persian and Indian Works of Art. Habsburg, Feldman, 1989. no. 66, p. 36, ill. (color).

Komaroff, Linda, ed. "The Intersection of Past and Present in Iranian Art." In In the Fields of Empty Days. Los Angeles, CA, 2018. no. 92, pp. 13, 28, 80, 204–5, ill. pl. 92.

Diba, Layla S., and Maryam Ekhtiar. Royal Persian Paintings: The Qajar Epoch, 1785–1925. Brooklyn Museum, 1998. no. 94, pp. 276, 278, ill. (color).

Recent Acquisitions, A Selection: 2018–20 . Part II Late Eighteenth Century to Contemporary (2021). p. 24, ill.