Equestrian Statue of Naser al-Din Shah
| Equestrian Statue of Naser al-Din Shah | |
|---|---|
 The statue in a depot in Tehran, 1898 | |
| Year | 1888 |
The Equestrian Statue of Naser al-Din Shah (Persian: تندیس سوارکاری ناصرالدینشاه) was a Bronze statue designed by Iranian sculptor Mirza Ali Akbar. The statue, depicting Naser al-Din Shah Qajar on horseback, was inaugurated in 1888 and commissioned by the director of the Iranian Royal Arsenal for both the 40th anniversary of his personal rule and the one-hundredth anniversary of Qajar dynasty rule over Iran in general.[1] The Statue was initially designed for Tehran's Toopkhaneh Square, but was eventually placed in the gardens of Bagh-e Shah.[2]
The statue was placed on a Red Verona marble pedestral, on which a Persian version of Augustus's Res Gestae was scripted. Naser al-Din Shah was styled "Imperator" of all countries of Greater Iran. The text summarizes the works of progress, which the shah had performed in forty years of his ''glorious'' rule.[3][4]
Iranian art historian Layla S. Diba stated the statue "became a hated symbol of Qajar rule and was subsequently torn down." After that, Reza Shah melted down the statue in 1928 and it is said to have been recycled again in metal for the arms industry.[5]
History
Background
In 1873, when visiting the Palace of Versailles and the Louvre in France in 1873, Naser al-Din Shah showed much interest for western statues. In his diary, the shah wrote:
There were also some marble statues of Venus… one of which has been beautifully carved
— Naser al Din Shah Qajar, Carole Hillenbrand (intr.), The Diary of H. M. The Shah of Persia during his tour through Europe in A. D. 1873 (reprint Costa Mesa: Mazda, 1995), p. 246.
Naser al-Din Shah's interest in commissioning a bronze statue of himself began in 1882 when Antonio, Conte di Monteforte, the Italian-born chief of the National police force of Iran,[6] placed a bronze bust of the shah on Laleh-Zar Street.[3] The shah, however, was not pleased with the location on which Conte di Monteforte had placed the scuplture. After the bust was ordered to be placed on a tall collumn, the shah remained displeased.[3] Thus later that year the shah commisioned the Iranian Royal Arsenal to make a more grandiose statue of himself.
References
- ↑ Kreiser, Klaus. "Iran und Iranisch geprägte Kulturen" (PDF). Klaus-kreiser.de.
- ↑ Adelvand, Padideh. "War and Urban sculptures Tehran" (PDF). Manzar-sj.com.
- 1 2 3 "BEITRÄGE ZUR IRANISTIK : Gegründet von Georges Redard, herausgegeben von Nicholas Sims-Williams" (PDF). Klaus-kreiser.de. Retrieved 2026-07-06.
- ↑ "The Garden and Pavilion in Persian Art", Persian Gardens and Pavilions, I.B.Tauris, 2013, doi:10.5040/9780755693580.ch-003, ISBN 978-1-78076-121-3, retrieved 2026-06-08
- ↑ Bonine, Michael E. (June 2004). "Téhéran capitale bicentenaire, eds. Chahryar Adele and Bernard Hourcade, Paris and Tehran: Institut Français de Recherche en Iran, 1992, Bibliothèque Iranienne 37, ISBN 2-87723-055-4, and 90-6831-80-7 (paper) 386 pp., bibliography, index". Iranian Studies. 37 (2): 346–351. doi:10.1017/s0021086200017606. ISSN 0021-0862.
- ↑ Piemontese, Angelo Michele (2008). "Lapidi Di Militi E Civili Emigrati D'italia in Persia". Oriente Moderno. 88: 25–70. ISSN 0030-5472. JSTOR 23073480.