Mechti Kuli Beg, Persian Ambassador to Prague

Aegidius Sadeler II

1605 · Engraving · Drawings and Prints

In fall 1603, soon after an embassy from Rudolf II had requested support in his struggle against the Ottomans in Hungary, Shah Abbas of Persia launched an attack against the eastern borders of the Ottoman Empire. In order to maintain close diplomatic relations with the Holy Roman Emperor during this long campaign, the shah dispatched to Prague an ambassador, who posed, holding his pet falcon, for this portrait by Rudolf's court engraver. Sadeler must have been intrigued by Persian script, though he had some difficulty engraving the inscription that identifies the sitter as an envoy of Shah Abbas. The calligraphic cluster at the left, representing the ambassador's name, could have been copied from his signet ring.

Artist

Aegidius Sadeler II

Date

1605

Medium

Engraving

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1949