ABSTRACT
In the Asian and African Studies Reading Room of the British Library, next to a portrait of the second Qajar monarch, Fath Ali Shah (r. 1797-1834), hangs another portrait of a bearded Persian: that of Mirza Abul Hasan Khan Ilchi (hereafter referred to as Ilchi), Envoy Extraordinaire from the court of Fath Ali Shah to that of King George III (r. 1760-1820) in the years 1809-10. The painting shows the ambassador dressed in full Qajar garb: a gold brocade tunic, vest, turban, and green slippers. He is standing in front of a window with a view of the English sky and trees in the distance. By all accounts, he was a sight to behold.
