''Mirror Hall'' is an oil on canvas painting by

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

ian realist painter

Kamal-ol-Molk Mohammad Ghaffari ( fa, محمد غفاری), better known as Kamal-ol-Molk (), was an Iranian painter and part of the Ghaffari family in Kashan. Biography Mohammad Ghaffari, better known as Kamal-ol-Molk, born in Kashan in 1848, to a family wi ...

, his first work since receiving the title ''Kamal-ol-Molk'' ("Perfection of the Realm"). It is considered one of his masterpieces, and marks a starting point in Iran's modern art. The painting was executed in over five years, depicting

Qajar Qajar Iran (), also referred to as Qajar Persia, the Qajar Empire, '. Sublime State of Persia, officially the Sublime State of Iran ( fa, دولت علیّه ایران ') and also known then as the Guarded Domains of Iran ( fa, ممالک م ...

ruler

Naser-ed-Din Shah Naser al-Din Shah Qajar ( fa, ناصرالدین‌شاه قاجار; 16 July 1831 – 1 May 1896) was the fourth Shah of Qajar Iran from 5 September 1848 to 1 May 1896 when he was assassinated. He was the son of Mohammad Shah Qajar and Malek ...

sitting on a chair in front of a window at the Mirror Hall of the

Golestan Palace The Golestan Palace ( fa, کاخ گلستان, ''Kākh-e Golestān''), also transliterated as the Gulistan Palace and sometimes translated as the Rose Garden Palace from Persian language, was built in the 16th century, renovated in the 18th cen ...

, where the Qajar dynasty resided. The completion of the painting coincided with the Qajar ruler's murder in 1896, and the rise of Mozaffar-ed-Din Shah, the fifth Qajar ruler. Kamal-ol-Molk was later questioned about the theft of some precious gems located at the hall, but the actual culprit was eventually found. The Mirror Hall is famous for its remarkable mirror work. It was designed by architect Abd-ol-Hosein (Sani-ol-Molk), while Minister of Architecture Yahya Khan (Mowtamed-ol-Molk) was the consultant.

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See also