Qalamdan

Le Carre Hermes Paris > Automne-Hiver 1990/91

Qalamdans, Persian papier-mache pencil-boxes brought back by travellers in the 19th century, enchanted the Europeans with their exquisitely drawn portrayals of hunting or battle scenes, though there are some portrait, landscapes and scenes from religious, domestic or country life - all of them set against a background of flowers, butterflies, fruit birds, and insects of every variety. Monumental miniatures !