15 Facts About Persian art

At different times, influences from the art of neighbouring civilizations have been very important, and latterly Persian art gave and received major influences as part of the wider styles of Islamic art.

Persian art continued to place larger emphasis on figures than Islamic art from other areas, though for religious reasons now generally avoiding large examples, especially in sculpture.

Large carved rock relief, typically placed high beside a road, and near a source of water, is a common medium in Persian art, mostly used to glorify the king and proclaim Persian control over territory.

Persian art rulers commonly boasted of their power and achievements, until the Muslim conquest removed imagery from such monuments; much later there was a small revival under the Qajar dynasty.

Sogdian religious Persian art reflects the religious affiliations of the Sogdians, and this knowledge is derived mostly from paintings and ossuaries.

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Meanwhile, growth in mass market production and sale of Persian art made it more commonplace and accessible to merchants and professionals.

Persians gradually adopted Arabic scripts after the conquest, and Persian calligraphy became an important artistic medium, often used as part of the decoration of other works in most media.

The art of the Persian book was born under this dynasty, and was encouraged by aristocratic patronage of large manuscripts such as the Jami' al-tawarikh compiled by Rashid-al-Din Hamadani, and the Demotte or Great Mongol Shahnameh, probably commissioned by his son.

Persian miniature is a small painting on paper, whether a book illustration or a separate work of art intended to be kept in an album of such works called a muraqqa.

The Persian art miniature was the dominant influence on other Islamic miniature traditions, principally the Ottoman miniature in Turkey, and the Mughal miniature in the Indian sub-continent.

In Islamic Persian art this is referred to as "illumination", and manuscripts of the Qur'an and other religious books often included considerable number of illuminated pages.

Scholars have not found evidence of Persian art drawing before the Mongol invasions but hunting, combat between men and animals and animal fables are believed to be Persian art or Central Asian themes.

Under the Safavids, the art of the book, especially Persian miniature painting, constituted the essential driving force of the arts.

The Persian art blue is distinguished from the Chinese blue by its more numerous and subtle nuances.

Persian art was one of the artists who introduced a more European style to Persian painting.