Qajar Period Vase Decorated with Ducks and Fish, 19th Century

This charming vase captures the spirit of late Qajar artistry, in which traditional Persian calligraphy and naturalistic motifs were reinterpreted with expressive spontaneity. The juxtaposition of aquatic and avian life — symbolising the harmony of earth, water, and sky — recalls Safavid precedents while reflecting the more personal, painterly idiom that flourished in 19th-century provincial workshops such as those of Kashan or Rayy. Its translucent glaze and playful figuration embody the enduring Persian fascination with poetry, nature, and the divine order of creation.

Of baluster form with a narrow neck and everted rim, decorated in cobalt blue, manganese, and copper green under a transparent crackled glaze. The body is finely painted with a lively landscape scene of birds and fish among stylised trees, the naïve yet lyrical composition rendered against a pale blue ground. Around the shoulder, a band of elegant naskh script in cobalt blue encircles the vessel, invoking blessings and poetic beauty, bordered above and below by thin green and ochre lines.