The Reaction of Surprise “angosht be dahān/dandān gereftan” in Persian Poetry and Miniature

Humans show different emotions in reaction to various phenomena around them. One of these emotions is surprise that is expressed in reaction to impressive events. A surprised individual shows reactions that have physiological and cultural roots. One of these reactions is “angosht be dahān/dandān gereftan” (to put one’s curved index finger on one’s mouth) which seems to be specific to the Iranian culture. Applying a descriptive-historical approach, this study seeks to delve into the history of this reaction, its possible changes over time, and why it is used in Persian miniature. For this purpose, the expression of “angosht be dahān/dandān gereftan” was studied through the library and documentary method as a surprise reaction in Persian poetry from the time of Rudaki onward (nearly a thousand years). On the other hand, its visual examples in the Persian miniature in the past 700 years were examined. The findings show that this reaction has remained unchanged in its form and meaning over the centuries and has been present all the time in Iranian cultural history. It has always been a good way to represent a surprised individual by a miniature artist who, following the codes of Persian miniature, should not represent facial emotions.