In Persian painting of the Timurid and Safavid periods, the royal throne, as a central element, has played a meaning‑constituting role in organizing the discourse of power. Despite its importance, previous studies have been predominantly descriptive and iconographic and have not addressed the discursive function of the throne in the reproduction of power structures based on Foucault's theory. Hence, the main problem of the present research is how the throne is represented as a discursive mechanism, relying on Foucault's discourse of power in these two periods. This research aims to analyze and compare the discursive function of the royal throne in Timurid and Safavid painting based on Foucault's discourse of power, in order to demonstrate how the representation of the throne as a discursive mechanism produces and consolidates concepts such as royal legitimacy and social hierarchies, and thereby clarifies the transformations in the subtexts of power and knowledge across these two periods.



Research questions: How does the royal throne, as a discursive mechanism within the framework of Foucault's theory of power, produce and reproduce the structures of power and royal legitimacy in Timurid and Safavid painting?

Based on Foucault's approach to the discourse of power, and considering the historical transformations of the throne, what changes can be observed in the representation of the discourse of power in Safavid painting compared to Timurid painting?

The present research is fundamental in terms of its objective and qualitative in nature. It employs a descriptive‑analytical method with a comparative approach, utilizing discourse analysis based on Foucault's theory of power. Data collection was carried out through library research, and the analysis was conducted in four stages: description, coding of discursive concepts, comparative analysis, and conclusion. The research corpus consists of Timurid and Safavid paintings in which the royal throne is represented, or royal power is reproduced in the physical absence of the throne. From among these, based on the principle of theoretical saturation, 20 paintings (10 works from each period) were purposefully selected according to their visual, historical, and content characteristics.

The findings indicate that in Timurid painting, the royal throne, by employing visual centrality, geometric symmetry, distancing, and the stasis of figures, represents a static and centralized power. In contrast, in Safavid painting, the throne is situated within a pluralistic and ritualistic structure, and power is distributed through courtly interactions, collective presence, and surrounding symbolic elements. This transformation signifies a shift from stasis and absolute centrality to dynamic action and active courtly behavior.