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Octagonal Mirror Case with Lid
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.
About this work
This mirror case focuses on a single female figure shown on both the interior and exterior of the case. Although she wears a slightly different ensemble in the painting inside the lid, the woman has the same henna tattoo on her throat. On the exterior she is mounted on horseback and wears a jacket embroidered with gems and pearls over a pair of wide-legged trousers, typical for ladies of the Qajar court. Her bold continuous eyebrow, kohl-lined eyes, and henna-dyed fingernails accord with Qajar fashion.
Cleveland Museum of Art’s own descriptionCredit lineOctagonal Mirror Case with Lid, 1800s. Iran, probably Isfahan, Qajar period (1779–1925). Varnished lacquer and opaque watercolor over papier-mâché. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Mrs. L. E. Holden, 1918.785
