Hamadan (Iran): Gunbad-i Alaywian: View of Mausoleum's Northeast Facade

There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .

IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.

View manifest View in Mirador Viewer

Object Details

sova.fsa.a.04_ref10310

GUID

Local Numbers: FSA A.4 2.12.GN.36.06
General: Title and summary note are provided by Shabnam Rahimi-Golkhandan, FSg curatorial research specialist.

Creator: Sevruguin, Antoin, 1851-1933
Names: Islamic Archives; Sevruguin, Antoin, 1851-1933; Smith, Myron Bement, 1897-1970
Collection Creator: Smith, Myron Bement, 1897-1970

Place: Asia; Iran; Hamadān (Iran)

Topic: Architecture; Inscriptions; Inscriptions, Arabic; Religious buildings

Creator: Sevruguin, Antoin, 1851-1933

See more items in: Myron Bement Smith Collection; Myron Bement Smith Collection / Series 2: The Islamic Archives / 2.12: Antoin Sevruguin Photographs / 2.12.01: Glass Plate Negatives / Glass Plate Negatives: Sets 1-61

Biographical / Historical: Antoin Sevruguin is one of the early pioneers of commercial photography in Iran. He arrived in Iran from Tbilisi, Georgia in the mid 1870s to set up shop in Ala al-Dawla street in Tehran. From the early days, Sevruguin's studio was trusted both by the Qajar court and by foreign visitors to Iran. Highly regarded for their artistic ingenuity outside Iran, Sevruguin's photographs of 'ethnic types,' architecture and landscape, and depictions of daily life of Tehran found their way into foreign travelogues, magazines and books. As such, he stands alone in a relatively large group of early Iranian photographers for being recognized and celebrated outside the boundaries of the country. Antoin Sevruguin passed away in 1933, leaving behind only a fraction of his large collection of glass negatives, which is currently in the Archives of the Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery.

Extent: 1 Glass negative (b&w, 18.4 cm. x 24 cm.)

Date: 1880-1930

Archival Repository: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives

Identifier: FSA.A.04, Item FSA A.4 2.12.GN.36.06

Type: Archival materials; Glass negatives

Collection Citation: The Myron Bement Smith Collection, FSA A.04. National Museum of Asian Art Archives. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Gift of Katherine Dennis Smith.

Arrangement: According to Myron B. Smith handwritten document (Myron Bement Smith Collection, Subseries 2.1: Islamic Archives History, Collection Information; Box 60; Folder 44: 47 P Antoine Sevruguin, glass negatives, Iran), Antoin Sevruguin's 696 glass negatives, at the time of their acquisition, were arranged into 61 boxes without any apparent organization. Today they are housed in archival document boxes, essentially duplicating the original arrangement, and stored on shelves. This glass negative was included into "Box 36."

Collection Rights: Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository.

Existence and Location of Copies: Gelatin silver print numbered FSA A.4 2.12.Sm.50; available in Myron Bement Smith Collection, Subseries 2.12: Antoin Sevruguin Photographs.

Bibliography: Arthur Upham Pope, A Survey of Persian Art: From Prehistoric Times to the Present, Volume VIII, London: Oxford University Press, 1964

Genre/Form: Glass negatives

Scope and Contents: "Presumably a mausoleum, the structure dates to the late 12th century - Seljuq - times. More recently, the new date of early fourteenth century is suggested for the structure. The photo depicts the entrance to the structure, apparently sealed, with a figure standing beside it. The figure would provide a sense of scale, which in the case of this image is the feature of the building in photographer's focus." [Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives, Curatorial Research Assistant]; - Scratched handwritten number (inked, probably by Antoin Sevruguin) reads, "468."; - Myron Bement Smith handwritten caption in English reads, "47.P; Box 36.6: Mosque. Entrance." [Myron Bement Smith Collection, Subseries 2.1: Islamic Archives History, Collection Information; Box 60; Folder 44: 47 P: Antoine Sevruguin, glass negatives, Iran]