Candlestick

• Accession Number:AKM613
• Place:Iran
• Dimensions:Height 37.9 cm
• Date:ca. 1560
• Materials and Technique:Engraved brass

I remember one night as my eyes wouldn’t close I heard the butterfly tell the candle I am stricken with love, if I burn it is but right But you why do you weep, why burn yourself out?

The above verse from a poem by the famous Iranian poet Sa‘di (died 1291–92) is commonly found on candlesticks (sham‘dans) of the Safavid period (1501–1722), including the upper band of the Aga Khan Museum candlestick shown here. The symbolic comparison between the mystic lover seeking the Divine and the moth yearning for the flame finds a natural home decorating lighting devices. Also typical of candlesticks from the Safavid period is split-palmette design on a cross-hatched background, here in an overall pattern that seems to rise along the ridges of the body. The overall floral scroll is interrupted by a six-lobed cusped arch chevron, which seems hidden in the densely engraved foliage.