Pen Box with European Women in Medallions
Muhammad Baqir Samirumi
Cover and sliding compartment with rounded ends. The top is decorated in vertical format with three cartouches of European women. In the center, a full-length woman stands in a pink floor-length dress; above and below are bust-length portraits. The sides are composed in a similar manner with an oblong cartouche in the center that features animals in a landscape, with small riverine landscapes to the left and right. On the base an arabesque is painted in gold on a black background. The artist Muhammad Baqir Samirumi sometimes added the number 303 to his signature. It has been suggested that this stands for the name “Baqir,” the letters of which have this numerical value. The signature "303 Samirumi" appears in the lower medallion cartouche, along with the date 1337 H. (1918-1919).
Oil paint, gold-colored pigments, and lacquer on pasteboard
Qajar period