Hajji Mirza Isma’il was sent by Fath ‘Ali Shah Qajar to the Caucasus to become the civil administrator (Hokmran) of the Khanate of Erivan, alongside the military governor Hossein Quli Khan. The Qajar tribe itself came from this region. With the signing of the treaty of Torkmanchai in February 1828 the Khanate was annexed by the Russian Empire. Hajji Mirza Isma’il was forced to resign his post and evacuate Erivan and return to Persia.

Lot 69. Alexander Orlowski (Russian, 1777-1832). Hajji Mirza Isma’il, Qajar hokmran (civil administrator) of the Khanate of Erivan, on horseback in a landscape, oil on tin panel, signed and dated 1819 lower right, 42 x 33 cm. Exhibited: Exposition des artistes polonais, Societe des Beaux-Arts, Paris, 1921 (typewritten label on frame). Estimate £ 8,000 – 12,000. Bonhams, 04/30/19. Sold £ 18,812.