A COMMEMORATIVE SILVER BOX

Iran, 1960s, commemorating Mohammad Reza Pahlavi's coronation on 26 October 1967

Of rectangular shape, the top and sides intricately engraved with symmetrical scrolling motifs in the Safavid revival style, the base plain, the lid set with the gilt imperial emblem, the hinged lid opening to reveal the gilt interior, the interior top right corner of the lid with three stamps in nasta'liq Persian '84 Mohammad Taqi Zufan, in fitted royal blue box, the interior rim of the fitted box stamped BANK-E MELLI IRAN PRESS, the padded white satin lid stamped with the imperial crown in gold, the base lined in dark blue velvet, 20.2cm x 10cm x 4.4cm; the fitted case 24cm x 14cm x 7cm; 673gr.

Mohammad Taqi Zufan of Isfahan (1894-1979) was the most prominent Iranian silversmith of the 20th century. A rare recipient of an imperial medal for his artistry, his highly organised workshop trained generations of silversmiths and undertook the most prestigious commissions of the period, the best-known perhaps the gold and silver shrine of the eighth Imam of the Shias, Imam Reza, in Mashad. Zufan's iconic molamma' 'milk and sugar' technique using both gold and silver was admired by millions of worshippers and pilgrims when it replaced the shrine previoulsy erected by Fath Ali Shah in 1959, then moved to the shrine's museum to protect it from further wear and tear in 2001.

He was appointed Honorary Servant of the Shrine for this work. His work embellishes the Shia shrines in Damascus, Najaf, and elsewhere in Mashad. It is not surprising that Zufan was chosen to design and produce the commemorative silver box of the Shah's coronation. The blue fitted box matches the Imperial Qurans published to mark the occasion, all under the supervision of Iran's National Bank. Zufan's rendition of the imperial emblem, a mere 2.4cm x 2.4cm cast plaque, is a tour de force in its quality of detail, bringing to life the symbolic significance of a royal household uniquely Persian: Ahura Mazda, the highest deity of Zoroastrianism is matched by the Lion and the Sun, a pre-Islamic rhyton, and Ali's double-edged sword, the Zulfiqar, framing a snow-capped Mount Damavand and the rising sun. The ribbon beneath the emblem reads Ferdowsi's 'mara dad farmoud o khod davar ast' (I act on His Orders and He is my Judge), a Persian allusion to the Divine Right of Kings, possibly modelled after Dieu et Mon Droit.