‘A historiographical inquiry into the falsification of Persian art’, in Proceedings of the Eighth European Conference of Iranian Studies, Volume 2: Studies on Iran and the Persianate World after Islam, ed. Olga M. Yastrebova, St. Petersburg: State Hermitage Museum, 2020, pp. 122-30. (original) (raw)

Abstract

which were focused on Iran and the Persianate world during the epoch after the spread and domination of Islam. The articles cover the extensive span of time, from the pre-Mongol era to modernity, and follow a very wide range of research directions, including history, historiography, art history, contemporary politics and society, religious thought, literary studies and linguistics. The volume is addressed to Iranologists and specialists in neighbouring fields.

Key takeaways

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  1. Arthur Upham Pope significantly shaped the appreciation of Persian art through international congresses and exhibitions.
  2. The Third Congress showcased 25,000 Persian art objects, attended by 218 delegates from 24 countries.
  3. Pope argued against over-caution in authentication, warning it may lead to rejecting genuine artifacts.
  4. The Boston Salver's authenticity remains disputed, despite passing multiple scientific tests.
  5. Pope's reliance on both material scientists and palaeographers highlights the interdisciplinary nature of art authentication.

Figures (2)

Fig. 1. The Third Congress of Iranian Art and Archaeology, Leningrad, 10 September 1935: Sarre (first from left), Bubnov (standing), Orbeli (seated on the left of Bubnov) and then Pope

Fig. 1. The Third Congress of Iranian Art and Archaeology, Leningrad, 10 September 1935: Sarre (first from left), Bubnov (standing), Orbeli (seated on the left of Bubnov) and then Pope

volved 1n the falsification debate of Persian ybjects that re-emerged due to the appear- nce of the illustrated copy of the Andarz-nadmah — with an arguably 11th-century date oroduction, thus the earliest illustrated Persian manuscript to survive — in the art mar n the 1950s. As discussed at length in the 1960 Congress proceedings”, many lead: scholars of the time were, willingly or unwillingly, engaged in the discussion of its < uistorical significance and raison d’étre. Pope, who mediated the sale of a large port of the manuscript to the Cincinnati Museum, was deeply concerned with the outcomes he debate, which may have reminded him ofa similar incident caused by the Boston Sal n the early 1930s. In his contribution to the proceedings, entitled ‘On the discovery of { sifications and the recognition of authenticity’, Pope includes the Boston Salver in a list he items that have been rejected by officials of high rank, museum curators or academic: vell-known universities (Pope 1981b. P. A/2). According to Pope, the Boston Salver w: et d’Archéologie Iraniens: Mémoires, 1939

volved 1n the falsification debate of Persian ybjects that re-emerged due to the appear- nce of the illustrated copy of the Andarz-nadmah — with an arguably 11th-century date oroduction, thus the earliest illustrated Persian manuscript to survive — in the art mar n the 1950s. As discussed at length in the 1960 Congress proceedings”, many lead: scholars of the time were, willingly or unwillingly, engaged in the discussion of its < uistorical significance and raison d’étre. Pope, who mediated the sale of a large port of the manuscript to the Cincinnati Museum, was deeply concerned with the outcomes he debate, which may have reminded him ofa similar incident caused by the Boston Sal n the early 1930s. In his contribution to the proceedings, entitled ‘On the discovery of { sifications and the recognition of authenticity’, Pope includes the Boston Salver in a list he items that have been rejected by officials of high rank, museum curators or academic: vell-known universities (Pope 1981b. P. A/2). According to Pope, the Boston Salver w: et d’Archéologie Iraniens: Mémoires, 1939

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References (16)

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