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Order of the lion and the Sun, presented to Sir John Kinneir MacDonald, the East India Company’s envoy to Iran (1824–30)
London, United Kingdom
Khalili Family Trust – Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art
About Khalili Family Trust – Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art, London
Dated Hejira 1242 / AD 1826–7
JLY 1631
Gold, translucent and opaque enamels, precious stones
Badge: 8 x 9cm; collar: 35.6 x 25.4cm; star: 15.2 x 12.5cm
Qajar
Iran, Tehran
In 1807, under European influence and modelled on the Légion d’Honneur, Fath ‘Ali Shah instituted The Order of the Sun, which he awarded to the French ambassador General Claude Mathieu Gardane. In 1809 the British envoy Sir Harford Jones refused to be awarded with the same insignia because of the hostilities with the French. As a consequence, in 1810, Fath ‘Ali Shah modified the Order of the Sun and created the new Order of the Lion and Sun, which was presented to John Malcolm, the envoy of the East India Company. The Khalili Order of the Lion and Sun was awarded by Fath ‘Ali Shah to Sir John Kinneir MacDonald (1782–1830), the East India Company’s envoy to Iran from 1824 to 1830, for his commitment in arranging a peace treaty with Russia. The insignia consists of a plaque, a collar and a star.
The plaque, which is decorated with a crouching lion-and-sun, bears the signature of Muhammad Ja‘far, a leading artist in painted enamels at the Qajar court, and the date AH 1242 (AD 1826–7). The collar consists of a double chain with eight enamelled plaques, eight small rosettes, the ‘Kayanid’ crown and a pendant. The star is decorated with an enamelled circular panel with the lion-and-sun and surrounded by a large number of facet-cut diamonds, emeralds and spinels.
Date and provenance are based on the signature and date on one of the pieces, as well as historical records.
Piotrovsky, M.B., and J.M. Rogers (eds), Heaven on earth. Art from Islamic Lands, exhibition catalogue, Munich: Prestel, 2004: no.128. p.178.
Rogers, J.M., The Arts of Islam. Masterpieces from the Khalili Collection, London: Thames & Hudson, 2010: no.459. pp.378–9.
Vernoit, S., Occidentalism, London: The Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art, volume 23, 1997: cat.56, p.102.
"Order of the lion and the Sun, presented to Sir John Kinneir MacDonald, the East India Company’s envoy to Iran (1824–30)" in Explore Islamic Art Collections. Museum With No Frontiers, 2024. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;EPM;uk;Mus21;27;en
MWNF Working Number: UK1 27
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