The Relationship Between the Safavid Family’s Claim to Sayyid Lineage and the Veiled Face in Early Safavid Paintings

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Mona Mirjalili Mohanna 1
Sayyed Abolghasem Hosseini (Zharfa) 2
Sayyed Mohammad Hossein Navvab 3
1 Faculty member, Department of Art, Institute of Higher Education of Islamic Art and Thought, Qom, Iran
2 Associate Professor, Institute of Higher Education of Islamic Art and Thought, Qom, Iran
3 Assistant Professor, Institute of Higher Education of Islamic Art and Thought, Qom, Iran
Abstract
The Safavid rulers’ claimed descent from Shaykh Safi al-Din Ardabili and the question of his Sayyid lineage—particularly during the reign of Shah Isma'il—played a crucial political and religious role in legitimizing their rule and elevating the Safavids’ status among the Qizilbash. This study argues that the notion of Sayyid lineage was visually reflected in the paintings of the early Safavid period and may be linked to figures depicted with veiled faces. The central questions explored in this article are: How was the Safavid family's Sayyid lineage represented in early Safavid paintings? And what is the relationship between this lineage and the veiled faces portrayed in these images? The methodology is descriptive-analytical, and data collection is based on library research.
The analysis of relevant texts and paintings, in conjunction with the Qizilbash belief in ḥulūl (incarnation), reveals that the veiling of faces in these artworks is connected to the Safavid claim of Sayyid descent and the legitimization of their rule through the possibility of multiple sacred identities.

Keywords

Theoretical Studies of Art
Volume 3, Issue 4
September 2023
Pages 125-153