TEHRAN – The fifth edition of the Baran Auction, specializing in Iranian and Islamic art, concluded with 86 percent of the works on offer sold, generating total proceeds of 369.06 billion tomans (approximately $1.37 million), with a work by prominent Iranian artist Mirza Aqa Emami achieving the highest price of 79 billion tomans ($292,593).
The auction, held on Friday evening, followed a seven-year hiatus. Its public exhibition opened on Tuesday at the Rayzan International Conference Center in Tehran, showcasing a collection presented by organizers as part of a research-led effort to preserve and promote Iran’s artistic heritage.
The fifth edition featured 69 authenticated works by 53 prominent artists, alongside historical artefacts representing different periods of Iranian and Islamic artistic traditions. Of these, 59 works were sold in a competitive bidding process, generating a combined 369.06 billion tomans.
According to the organizers, the works carried estimated starting valuations ranging from 120 million to 65 billion tomans. The final proceeds were equivalent to approximately $1,366,889, calculated at an exchange rate of 270,000 tomans per dollar.
The highest-selling work was Leather Pyrography by Mirza Aqa Emami, which had a starting price of 65 billion tomans before competitive bidding pushed its final price to 79 billion tomans ($292,593).
The second-highest result was achieved by A Royal Audience: The Safavid King Meets the Indian King, attributed to Muhammad Ali ibn Aqa Najaf Naqqashbashi. Offered at a starting price of 55 billion tomans, the work sold for 57 billion tomans ($211,111).
A Seljuk-era Qur’anic manuscript ranked third, selling for 45 billion tomans ($166,667), while an Ottoman gold-thread embroidered textile bearing the imperial tughra of Sultan Mahmud II fetched 37 billion tomans ($137,037).
Among the other notable results, a number of historical manuscripts, calligraphic works and traditional decorative arts attracted substantial bids.
A manuscript of the Masnavi-ye Ma’navi by Shams al-Din Ali Katib Shirazi sold for 13 billion tomans ($48,148), while a calligraphic work attributed to Ali Reza Abbasi, the celebrated calligrapher of the Safavid court, fetched 10.5 billion tomans ($38,889).

Other significant results included:
Calligraphic Painting by Sadegh Tabrizi: 16.5 billion tomans ($61,111).
Another work by Sadegh Tabrizi: 12 billion tomans ($44,444).
Relief Calligraphic Painting by Reza Mafi: 11 billion tomans ($40,741).
Calligraphic Painting by Muhammad Ehsai: 8.2 billion tomans ($30,370).
Chalipa Calligraphy by Mir Emad: 3.6 billion tomans ($13,333).
Shekasteh Nastaliq Calligraphy by Darvish Abdolmajid Taleqani: 3.1 billion tomans ($11,481).
The Third Feather, a work paying tribute to Mahmoud Farshchian: 19.5 billion tomans ($72,222).
The Seal by Yarmuhammad Khan Kermanshahi: 2.1 billion tomans ($7,778).
The Scroll by Amir Ahmad Falsafi: 1.8 billion tomans ($6,667).
The Ameli Album by Amirhushang Ameli: 1.8 billion tomans ($6,667).
Calligraphic Painting by Mehdi Fallah: 800 million tomans ($2,963).
The Tree Has Blossomed... by Muhammad Ali Gorgestani: 650 million tomans ($2,407).
Other historical and religious manuscripts also recorded notable sales. A handwritten work attributed to Qaem-Maqam Farahani fetched one billion tomans ($3,704), while a manuscript of Zad al-Ma’ad by Muhammad Hassan Esfahani sold for 750 million tomans ($2,778).
A copy of Maqtal by Abdolnabi Shirazi achieved 3.1 billion tomans ($11,481).
Several calligraphic works by celebrated Iranian masters, including Ahmad Neyrizi, Alaeddin Tabrizi, Mirza Abolqasem Farhang Shirazi, Khosrow Khoroush, Ali Ashraf Sandoughabadi and Muhammad Salahshour, also featured in the sale.
Traditional carpets and decorative arts contributed to the auction’s results. A Tehran Farsh-e Alaki carpet from the Ostad Asghar workshop sold for 4.8 billion tomans ($17,778), while a Farsh-e Khajeh carpet by Muhammad Ali Khajeh fetched 3.2 billion tomans ($11,852).
Ten works failed to reach their valuations and were withdrawn
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