Iran : five millennia of art and culture /
for the Museum für Islamische Kunst - Staatliche Museen zu Berlin ; edited by Ute Franke, Ina Sarikhani and Stefan Weber.
- 395 pages : illustrations (chiefly color), facsimiles, maps, portraits, photographs ; 30 cm.
Catalog of an exhibition held at the James-Simon-Galerie, Museumsinsel Berlin, December 6, 2021-March 20, 2022.
Includes bibliographical references.
Greeting / Greeting / Prelude / Iran- Five Millennia of Art and Culture / Iran- A Land Between East and West / First Cities, Early Empires / Elam- An Old Culture at the Dawn of Iran's History / The Era of the Petty Kingdoms- Rivalries and Alliances / The Luristan Bronzes / Ziwiye- A Mysterious Hoard / Hasanlu- A Lost City / Marlik- A 'Royal Cemetery' near the Caspian Sea / The Achaemenid Empire / Persepolis / 'Artazerxes, the Great King... says:' -- An Achaemenid Elephant Goad / In the Saddle- The Persians as Warriors and Hunters / Jewellery for Protection and Prestige / 'In vino veritas'- Carousing Persians / 'Horses... equiped most splendidly' / The Parthian and Sasanian Empires / The Parthian Empire / Not All that Glitters is Gold- Fire-Gilding / A 'Greek' Bowl from Nihavand in Iran? / Bright and Clear- New Glassmaking Techniques / Polytheism in the Parthian Empire / The Sasanian Empire / Sasanian Royal and Elite Images / Statue of a 'Saint' from the Church in Veh Ardashir / Sasanian Courtly Tableware / Head of a Fierce Lion / Two Sasanian Silver-Gilt Plates with Scenes of a Hunt / The Art of Glassmaking in the Sasanian Empire / Sasanian Coinage / Sasanian Seal Stones / Scripts in the Persian Empire / The Arab Conquest of Iran / Arabic Script before Calligraphy / Calligraphy- The Discovery of the Curve / Artistic Inspiration and Innovation / The Art of Glassmaking from Eight to the Thirteenth Century / The Iranian Revival- From the Late Ninth to the Early Eleventh Century / Silver- Culture of the Urban Elites and Economic Driving Force / Urban Elites along the Silk Road / Aesthetic Self-Determination in the Eastern Abbasid Caliphate / The Age of the Saljuqs / Silk Robe with Bird Medallions / Masterful Images- Damascened Metalwork / 'Saljuq' Art? / The Arrival of the Mongols- Genghis Khan and his Heirs / Gold Brocade Silk Lampas / Enlightenment through Illumination / The Earliest Manuscripts of Firdausi's Shahnama / Mongol Iran- Ceramics and China / The Timurids- Conquests, Decline and Cultural Flowering / The Well-Balanced Curve in Illumination and Calligraphy / The Illustration of Classical Persian Literature- Faith and Morality / Qisas al-Anbiya ('Stories of the Prophets') / Two Cenotaph Posts Decorated with Inscriptions / The 'Chinese Look'- The Invention of Persian Blue-and-White / The Safavid Era- A Sense of Place / Capital Cities, Elite Patronage and Centres of Artistic Production / The Illustration of Classical Persian Literature- Shahnama and History / Arms and Armour of the Safavids / Silk Textiles with Figural Motifs / Young Men Reading in the Garden / Sleeveless Overgarment of Silk Brocade with Floral Pattern / Three Silk Tomb Coverings / The Illumination of Safavid Religious Texts / The Give and Take- Animal Combat in Safavid Carpet Fragment / The Sarre Vase Carpet from Kerman / Textile Fragment with Boat Scene / Wall Hangings with Garden Idyll / On Non-Illustrative Persian Paintings and Those Who Painted Them / Safavid Tableware / Isfahan- The Image of an Extraordinary World / Hermann Parzinger -- Mark Jones -- Ina Sarikhani Sandmann -- Stefan Weber and Ute Franke -- Ute Franke -- Ute Franke -- Wouter F. M. Henkelman -- Christian Konrad Piller -- Christian Konrad Piller -- Christian Konrad Piller -- Christian Konrad Piller -- Christian Konrad Piller -- Bruno Jacobs -- Alexander Nagel -- Norbert Franken -- Ellen Rehm -- Ellen Rehm -- Ellen Rehm -- Ellen Rehm -- Josef Wiesehöfer -- Josef Wieshöfer -- Ellen Rehm -- Agnes Schwarzmaier -- Ellen Rehm -- Ellen Rehm -- Josef Wiesehöfer -- Prudence Oliver Harper -- Jens Kröger -- Jens Kröger -- Jens Kröger -- Prudence Oliver Harper -- The Indian Goddess Hariti on a Lion Throne with other Celestial Beings / Michele Minardi -- Jens Kröger -- Jens Kröger -- Jens Kröger -- Alberto Cantera -- Claus-Peter Haase -- Claus-Peter Haase -- Claus-Peter Haase -- Oliver Watson -- Jens Kröger -- Robert Hillenbrand -- Martina Müller-Wiener -- Oliver Watson -- Claus-Peter Haase -- Robert Hellenbrand -- Miriam Kühn -- Martina Müller-Wiener -- Oliver Watson -- Robert Hillenbrand -- Miriam Kühn -- Claus-Peter Haase -- Eleanor Sims -- Oliver Watson -- Robert Hillenbrand -- Claus-Peter Haase -- Eleanor Sims -- Ina Sarikhani Sandmann -- Miriam Kühn -- Oliver Watson -- Sussan Babaie -- Sussan Babaie -- Eleanor Sims -- Filiz Çakir Phillip -- Miriam Kühn -- Miriam Kühn -- Miriam Kühn -- Miriam Kühn -- Claus-Peter Haase -- Moya Carey -- Anna Beselin -- Miriam Kühn -- Miriam Kühn -- Eleanor Sims -- Oliver Watson -- Stafan Weber. I. II. III. IV. volume VI. VII. VIII. IX. X. XI.
"Lying between deserts, mountain chains and seas, Iran developed a fascinating cultural landscape. 360 objects from the time of the first advanced civilisations during the 3rd millennium BC until the end of the Safavid Empire in the early 18th century illustrate the outstanding significance of Iran as the initiator and centre of intercultural exchange. Exquisite artworks from the Sarikhani Collection in London and the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin invite visitors to embark on a journey in time through the cultural heritage of Iran. The highlights include the great pre-Islamic empires of the Achaemenids and the Sasanids, the establishment of a Persian-Islamic culture, the masterly artistic achievements of the 9th to the 15th centuries and the Golden Age of the Safavids. They are brought together as in a multifaceted kaleidoscope in the copious illustrations and provide insight into the art of the courts and the urban elites."--Provided by publisher. "Lying between deserts, mountain chains and seas, Iran developed a fascinating cultural landscape. Exquisite works of art from the time of the first advanced civilisations during the third millenium BCE until the early eighteenth century illustrate the outstanding significance of Iran as an initiator and centre of intercultural exchange. The great pre-Islamic empires of the Achaemenids and the Sasanians, the establishment of a Persian-Islamic culture, the supreme artistic achievements of the ninth to the fifteenth centuries and the Golden Age of the Safavids are just some of the highlights of this journey in time through the cultural heritage of Iran."--
Text in English.
"Iran: Five Millennia of Art and Culture" : December 6, 2021-March 20, 2022, James-Simon-Galerie, Museumsinsel Berlin, Berlin, Germany.