The entire background paper and painting is mounted in a magnificent revolving frame. The frame has lovely scrolls at the corners and an elaborate crown-like figure at the top. The borders of the frame and the scrolling are covered in gilt or gold paint. The frame is in excellent condition with no chips or cracks and the glass appears to be the original.

The outer frame measures 12 1/2" high by 10 1/2" wide by 3/4" thick. The inner revolving frame measures 10 1/2" high by 8" wide by 3/4" thick. The base measures 7" wide by 3 1/2" deep. The painting of the Falconer is 6” high by 3 1/8” wide. The entire piece is in generally excellent condition. We date it to the late 19th century.

The style of the picture is done in the Persian school of the past 200 years, The hat on the falconer is not the usual shape of the turbans and is not Persian as such. The alphabet of Arabic, Persian, Urdu and Afghani languages are all the same (with a little variation of a few letters) but the languages are different.The text surrounding the painting is not attempting to show the calligrapher's competence, but is rather like a collection of notes, scribbled at different angles. Most of it contains Arabic words, with words like Husain and Khan more clearly written. The expert we consulted said “If I were going to hazard a guess, I would say, it originates further east , maybe N. India at about late 19 century when there was a wave of nostalgia about the arts of the Mughal period which itself was so profoundly influenced by Persian art. This does not detract from the quality and beauty of this particular example, it just gives it a different dimension.”

A Persian miniature is a small painting, whether a book illustration or a separate work of art intended to be kept in an album of such works. The techniques are broadly comparable to the Western and Byzantine traditions of miniatures in illuminated manuscripts. Although there is an equally well-established Persian tradition of wall-painting, the survival rate and state of preservation of miniatures is better, and miniatures are much the best-known form of Persian painting in the West. Miniature painting became a significant Persian form in the 13th century, and the highest point in the tradition was reached in the 15th and 16th centuries The Persian miniature was the dominant influence on other Islamic miniature traditions, principally the Ottoman miniature in Turkey, and the Mughal miniature in the Indian sub-continent.

The origin of the Persian miniature is difficult to trace. The art form reached its peak mainly during the Mongol and Timurid periods (13th-16th century), and was heavily influenced by Chinese paintings as the Mongol rulers of Persia brought with them numerous Chinese artists to the court.