Ṣanīʻ al-Mulk, 1814-1866

Abu'l-Hasan Khan Ghaffari Kashani (Persian: ابوالحسن غفاری; 1814–1866) was an Iranian painter, miniature and lacquer artist, and book illustrator. When he became the Chief Court Painter, he also became known as Sani al-Mulk (صنیع‌الملک), meaning "The Crafter of the Kingdom." He was a student of Mihr 'Ali and a court painter in Mohammad Shah Qajar's court. After being dismissed as a court painter, he went to Europe to study, most notably in Italy. When he returned to Iran, he became the Director of Printing and Chief Illustrator for Naser al-Din Shah and earned the separate title Chief Court Painter. He supervised the illustration of a famous One Thousand and One Nights manuscript, which can be viewed today in Tehran in the Golestan Palace Library.