A Critical Review on the Book “Qajar Tilework”

Qajar tilework incorporates a wide arena that is inseparable from the architecture of this era. Tile medium has been used in different forms and techniques during the art history of Iran; however, the Qajar era is of greater significance regarding the large number of works produced and the related innovations occurred in this field. The book “Qajar Tilework” is a field study of this art medium dealing with the neglected status of Persian tiles during the relatively long reign of the Qajars in Persian culture and architecture. This book is a unique and pioneering study in terms of presenting various pictures under one categorization, and describing the visual and aesthetic features of Qajar tiles and monuments; yet facing with some deficiencies which have been identified and should be corrected for future publication. Mere consideration of the tiles which are only visible in remained historic buildings and complexes, and consequently ignoring the study of extant samples in the present, available collections and achieves; disregarding the whole field of inscriptions (tiles with calligraphic scripts); conceptual misunderstanding between motif and theme; and not using up-to-date sources, while leaving out some authoritative, original ones are among the major shortcomings and defects of the book.