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Fan with Poetic Verses

dated 1301 AH/1883–1884 CE
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 462
This rare lacquer fan consists of twenty wooden blades painted with floral and vegetal scrolls and poetic inscriptions. The design is European whereas the construction is related to nineteenth‑century Cantonese fans exported to Europe in quantity. The verses are rhyming couplets by the renowned Persian mystical poet Hafiz. While luxury objects such as this were often exported and thus tailored to the tastes of Europeans, they were also collected by the Iranian elite.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Fan with Poetic Verses
  • Date: dated 1301 AH/1883–1884 CE
  • Geography: Made in Iran, Tehran
  • Medium: Wood; painted, gilded, and lacquered
  • Dimensions: H. 9 1/4 in. (23.5 cm)
    W. when open 18 1/2 in. (47 cm)
  • Classification: Lacquer
  • Credit Line: The Moses Lazarus Collection, Gift of Josephine and Sarah Lazarus, in memory of their father, 1888–95
  • Object Number: 90.2.65
  • Curatorial Department: Islamic Art

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