Abdallah Khan

Farman by Mohammad Shah Qajar; the Shah grants Abdallah Khan the title as "Khan" and appoints him naqqash bashi and me'mar bashi, order on the construction of the royal palace

Not much is known about Abdallah Khan's personal life.[1] He was born c. 1770 and is known to have received his apprenticeship in the royal workshops, working as one of the groups of artists (naqqashan-e naqqashkhane-ye homayun).[2][3] In 1839, he was appointed by the Qajar shah Mohammad Shah (r. 1834-1848) as painter laureate (naqqāsh bāshī), court architect (me῾mār bāshī) and supervisor of the royal workshops.[2] Following his appointment, all groups such as the painters (naqqashan), architects (me'maran), engineers (mohandisan), enamelers (minakaran), carpenters (najjaran), lapidaries/sculptors (hajjaran), potters (fakhkharan), glass-cutters (shishe-baran), smiths (haddadan), janitors (saraydaran), gardeners (baghbanan), canal diggers (moqanniyan) and candle makers (shamme'an) were ought to recognize Abdallah Khan as their supervisor.[2][3]

Khan was part of the first generation of Qajar-era painters, which also included Mirza Baba, Mihr 'Ali and Mohammad Hasan Khan.[4] He is known to have met William Price in 1812 in Tehran, an orientalist and a member of the Gore Ouseley mission to Iran, whom he showed several of his paintings.[5] He died c. 1850, during the early reign of Naser al-Din Shah Qajar (1848-1896).[1]

Image from a reduced copy of the Negarestan Palace mural showing Fath-Ali Shah enthroned with his sons, attended by gholams. Created in 1816-1820

His best-known work was a mural covering three internal walls of the audience hall of the Negarestan Palace in Tehran.[6][1] The work depicts 118 life-size figures. The end wall depicts an enthroned Fath-Ali Shah Qajar (r. 1797-1834), the then reigning Shah of Iran, attended by twelve of his sons and six gholams, who wield the royal shield amongst others. On the side walls, two strings of courtiers and foreign envoys and guards are shown. Amongst the latter are the British John Malcolm, Harford Jones (later named Harford Jones-Brydges), and Gore Ouseley on one side. On the other side are the French General Gardane, Pierre Amédée Jaubert, and Joseph Jouannin.[1]

The orientalist Edward Granville Browne, in the late 1880s, reading the inscription below the painting, attributed the work to Abdallah Khan and dated it to 1812-1813. Most 19th-century travellers in Iran however incorrectly attributed it to Mohammad Hasan Khan, including George Curzon. Curzon's error was also followed by Philipp Walter Schulz.[6][1] The original work was later lost, but a full-scale copy was made in 1904 during the reign of Mozaffar ad-Din Shah Qajar (r. 1896–1907), and is currently stored in the Persian Foreign Office.[1] Several reduced (small-scale) copies were also made for European diplomats and visitors. One of these was engraved in London in 1834 by Robert Havell.

Shortly after completing the Negarestan Palace mural, Abdallah Khan, in 1813-1814, completed other murals (frescoes) in the Soleymaniyeh Palace (now the National School of Agriculture) in Karaj. These depict the courts of Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar (r. 1789-1797) and Fath-Ali Shah Qajar. A few fragments of this mural were maintained in the library of the aforementioned school.[6][1]

Abdallah Khan was also known for being an adept painter in enamel and oil. He also painted several full-length portraits of Fat′h-Ali Shah Qajar, including one housed in the Victoria and Albert Museum which depicts him wearing a red robe and a bejewelled Astrakhan cap.[6] He was also imperial designer of Fath-Ali Shah's marble cenotaph in Qom.[6] His relationship with two of his former colleagues, Mirza Baba (who also held the title of naqqāsh bāshī) and Mihr 'Ali, remains unclear.[1] Whereas they also worked in other media such as lacquer and enamel, Abdallah Khan seemingly confined himself to oil painting.[1]