West-östlich diplomacy and connoisseurship in the late Habsburg Empire: Baron Albert Eperjesy and his dispersed collection of Persian art

Abstract

The purpose of this essay is threefold. Firstly, it attempts to introduce the diplomatic and collecting careers of the Austro-Hungarian diplomat Baron Albert Eperjesy (1848–1916), who was the highest representative of his country in numerous European capitals and –between 1895 and 1901– Tehran. Secondly, an attempt will be made to contextualise his collecting habits by drawing attention to the peculiarities of Austro-Hungarian collector diplomats. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the Persian element of this collection will be discussed within the previously outlined framework, namely, what artworks it did include, how and where he obtained them, and what would be their subsequent fate.

Keywords

• austro-hungarian empire
• bozen/bolzano
• collecting
• amīr khusraw
• eperjesy
• albert
• govardhan
• mughal art
• persian art
• persian calligraphy
• qājār dynasty
• tehran
• tyrol