Royal Reception in a Landscape, right folio from a double-page frontispiece of a Shahnama (Book of Kings) of Firdausi (940–1019 or 1025)
1444
Maker Unknown
Islamic Art
Royal Reception in a Landscape, right folio from a double-page frontispiece of a Shahnama (Book of Kings) of Firdausi (940–1019 or 1025), 1444. Iran, Shiraz, Timurid period (1370-1501). Opaque watercolor, gold, and silver on paper; overall: 32.5 x 22.1 cm (12 13/16 x 8 11/16 in.); recto image: 27.7 x 10.3 cm (10 7/8 x 4 1/16 in.); verso image: 26.3 x 20.7 cm (10 3/8 x 8 1/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1945.169 The painting on the verso of this folio is the first half of a double-page frontispiece now detached from a Shah-nama manuscript (see CMA 1956.10 for the second half of the frontispiece). The scene does not illustrate a narrative from the Shah-nama, but is likely a representation of the courtly audience for whose entertainment the manuscript was created. The date and style of the painting indicate that it was made during the reign of the Timurid dynasty in Shiraz, Iran. Seemingly uninterested in the emissaries and gifts, a prince kneels with six royal women under an open tent and tries to coax one to have a drink.
- Maker/Artist
- Maker Unknown
- Classification
- Manuscript
- Formatted Medium
- opaque watercolor, gold, and silver on paper
- Medium
- opaque, watercolor, gold, silver, paper
- Dimensions
- Overall: 32.5 x 22.1 cm (12 13/16 x 8 11/16 in.); Recto Image: 27.7 x 10.3 cm (10 7/8 x 4 1/16 in.); Verso image: 26.3 x 20.7 cm (10 3/8 x 8 1/8 in.)
- Inscribed
- Inscription: Yā kabīkaj Translation: King of Cockroaches Remark: The inscription on the recto is a talismanic inscription against insects that might damage the book. Inscription: Recto: Effaced seal
- Departments
- Islamic Art
- Accession Number
- 1945.169
- Credit Line
- Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
- Exhibitions
- Exhibition of the Month: Texture in Art, The Exhibition of Persian Art: 7000 Years of Art in Iran, Muslim Miniature Paintings, Juxtapositions, Persian Miniature Manuscripts, <em>Islamic art rotation</em>. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (December 16, 2013-December 15, 2014). (1945.169.b only), <em>Exhibition of Islamic Art</em>. De Young Memorial Museum, San Francisco, CA (February 24-March 22, 1937)., <em>Exhibition of Persian Art. </em>The Iranian Institute, New York, NY (1940)., <em>Exhibition of Islamic Art</em>. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1944)., <em>Mostra d'Arte Iranica</em> [<em>Exhibition of Iranian art</em>]. Instituto Italiano Per Il Medio Ed Estremo Oriente, Rome (June-August 1956)., <em>7000 Ans d'art en Iran</em>. Petit Palais, Paris (October-November 1961)., <em>Muslim Miniature Paintings from American Collections</em>. Fondazione Giorgio Cini, Venice, Italy; Asia House, New York, NY (September 1962-February 1963)., <em>Imperial Images in Persian Painting</em>. The Scottish Arts Council Gallery, Edinburgh, Scotland (August 13-September 11, 1977)., <em>The Twain Shall Meet</em>. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 30, 1985-January 5, 1986)., <em>Order and Rhythm: Carpets from the Islamic World</em>. Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (September 10-November 7, 1993<em>).</em>, <em>Islamic art rotation</em>. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (December 16, 2013-December 15, 2014). (1945.169.b only)
- Rights Statement
- CC0
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