The works in the reopened Irvani Gallery bring a dazzling chapter of Iranian art to London, where it has a surprisingly long history.
The Irvani Gallery, first opened in 1975, hosted an exhibition called The Forgotten Empire in 2005, to massive public interest. The Forgotten Empire detailed the history and art of the Persian Empire, and was a significant impetus for the new arrangement.
 |  | Glazed brick relief panel. Achaemenid Persian, late 6th century BC. From Susa, south-west Iran. © British Museum |
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A bit of context: what is now called Iran was once the headquarters of one of the largest empires in the history of the world, stretching from the Indus River to the western portion of Libya, and into parts of present day Greece in the north at its height. The Persian Empire, begun under Cyrus the Great in the 6th century BC, lasted for more than two hundred years. The region was at the forefront of metallurgy, architecture, and political power.
The revamped display at the Irvani Gallery takes access to this period to a new level. The show combines multi-media installations exploring the migration of agriculture through the Middle East and Europe with more traditional collections of artefacts.
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In an exhibition of this sort, the challenge is as much one of processing the sheer volume of material on display as reckoning with any particular work. As is often the case, some of the smaller works offer the deepest insights – tiny clay tablets, written in cuneiform (an early form of writing), recording the death of Alexander the Great and the appearance of Halley’s Comet, for example, illustrate the significant events of this ancient period.
‘Cyrus’ Cylinder’, another rather small-scale cuneiform work, is displayed in the centre of the gallery. Again, though not a physically imposing object (it is no bigger than a computer console) the document’s importance is extraordinary. It is often described as the first charter of human rights in the world as it mandates specific protections for civilian populations.
Given that it was created after the relatively peaceful conquest of Babylon in 539 (citing the crimes of the Babylonian king), and that it begins, “I am Cyrus, King of the World…”, you could also call is ‘the first press release’.
 | | Gold griffin-headed armlet from the Oxus treasure Achaemenid Persian, 5th-4th century BC, from the region of Takht-i Kuwad, Tadjikistan. © British Museum |
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Ultimately, however, the massive plaster casts of the Apadana Hall and Xerxes’ palace at Persepolis are the most imposing works. Created in the 19th century, the casts were never publicly displayed. Experiencing them is suitably overwhelming.
The largest, those from Xerxes’ palace, hang along the north staircase of the gallery. It is perhaps the juxtaposition of these gigantic works and the tiny tablets that offers the greatest testament to the power of the Persian Empire; not only was it a dynastic hierarchy capable massive architectural projects like the Apadana, it was also a sophisticated civil administration with an interest in citizenship, not just subjecthood.
