Mirror case with religious decoration, Iran, late 19th / early 20th century Large papier-mâché mirror case with painted and lacquered religious decoration. On one side of the lid, a mother with a child and an old man holding a bunch of grapes, an angel presenting a cup of flowers above their heads. On the reverse, in a medallion, a group of ascetics in front of a landscape busy with different occupations, one smoking hookah, another mixing a preparation, the others pensive or in discussion. On the back of the case, a bearded man sitting on a basin pouring water, a lion at his side, faces an angel holding a laurel wreath in his right hand, an image of a woman writing a document in her left hand. Behind them, a hill built of some architecture and dominated by a Latin cross and in the sky, two angels carrying a sleeping man in a white cloth. Collection label on the inside, no. 479. 51.9 x 35.1 cm Missing glass, chips, wear in the corners and edges, small repairs. The iconography of the decorations of this case is disconcerting. The Christian inspiration of the decorations of the lid and the back of the case is undeniable. The mother with child and the bearded man may be inspired by a Western Holy Family, while the man with the lion is reminiscent of St. Jerome or the Evangelist Mark, and the angels above him are thuriferous angels raising a soul. A Qajar Papier-mâché Mirror Case, Iran, late 19th / early 20th century