Pair of 19th Century Persian Miniature Paintings of Polo Players

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A well-matched pair of antique Persian miniature paintings, each depicting a trio of polo players — chovgan — mid-swing as … Read more A well-matched pair of antique Persian miniature paintings, each depicting a trio of polo players — chovgan — mid-swing as they cross a flower-scattered field. Rendered in gouache and ink on hand-laid paper, the ground in each scene shifts from a soft lavender-gray to a warm ochre band along the horizon, scattered throughout with small red and green florals. Faint lines of calligraphic script are visible beneath the sky, suggesting these leaves were once part of a larger illustrated manuscript.

Riders in blue, orange, and teal robes, each crowned with a crisp white turban, urge white, tan, and black horses forward, mallets raised at the height of play. The compositions differ slightly in arrangement — one with two riders converging above a third sweeping in below, the other with the trio clustered tightly together, mallets crossing mid-action — yet share the same palette and painterly hand, reinforcing their identity as a true matched pair likely drawn from the same source.

Genuine age-related toning and light wear to the original paper are visible and add to the character and authenticity of these hand-painted folios.

Both pieces have been archival mounted to a white mat and presented in a matching whitewashed wood frame with intentionally distressed edges, glazed under glass, ready to hang together as a cohesive pair.

DIMENSIONS: 5-1/4" W x 7-3/4" H (artwork)
14-3/4" W x 3/4" D x 17-1/4" H (framed) See less