Rustam Slays Khaqan of Chin (text recto; painting verso of folio 200), Illustrated folio from a manuscript of the Shahnama by Firdawsi
Manuscripts17th-18th century

Rustam Slays Khaqan of Chin (text recto; painting verso of folio 200), Illustrated folio from a manuscript of the Shahnama by Firdawsi

17th-18th century

Description

This manuscript is the first volume of a two-volume Shahnama by Firdawsi with further Shahnama inspired interpolated texts from the Garshaspnama and the Barzunama. The manuscript has 325 folios and is copied in nastaliq script. There are two illuminated panels at the beginning of the prose and poetry sections of the Shahnama. There are 34 illustrations that appear to have been painted when the manuscript was copied and 26 simple style illustrations that can be dated to a later phase. Overall, based on the style of the illustrations, illumination, and the interpolated texts, the creation of the manuscript can be attributed to the late 17th-early 18th century in Kashmir, the northern region of India under Mughal control. Later in the 19th century, the incomplete manuscript was furnished with simple style illustrations and possibly with a new illuminated panel at the beginning of the text.

Classification
Manuscripts
Medium
Ink, colors, and gold on paper
Century
17th-18th century
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Department
Department of Islamic & Later Indian Art

Dimensions

36.8 x 23.5 cm (14 1/2 x 9 1/4 in.)

Provenance

George McFadden, New York, (by 1987-1988), sold; to José M.Soriano, New York, (1988-2014), gift; to the Harvard Art Museums, 2014.

Related Artworks

View More
Text (recto and verso), folio from a manuscript of the Shahnama of Firdawsi.
Manuscripts
Text (recto and verso), folio from a manuscript of the Shahnama of Firdawsi.
Unknown Artist, c. 1330

Ink and gold on paper

14th centuryPersian
Text on the Buddhist Rite of Repentance (San Senranchū)
Manuscripts
Text on the Buddhist Rite of Repentance (San Senranchū)
Unknown Artist, Kamakura period, datable to circa 1292

Booklet manuscript; ink on paper; sheets of paper folded into double pages bound with a simple loop

13th centuryJapanese
Manuscript of the Qur'an
Manuscripts
Manuscript of the Qur'an
Unknown Artist, 1885-1886

Calligraphy; ink, opaque watercolor and gold on paper

19th centuryOttoman
Folio from a Qur'an: Sura 2: mid 263 - mid 264 (recto), Sura 2: mid 264 - begin 266 (verso), left-hand side of a bifolio
Manuscripts
Folio from a Qur'an: Sura 2: mid 263 - mid 264 (recto), Sura 2: mid 264 - begin 266 (verso), left-hand side of a bifolio
Unknown Artist, 14th century

Ink and gold on paper

14th centuryPersian
Backing paper from the "Tale of Genji" Album (Genji monogatari gajō): Chapter 14, The Pilgrimage to Sumiyoshi (Miotsukushi)
Manuscripts
Backing paper from the "Tale of Genji" Album (Genji monogatari gajō): Chapter 14, The Pilgrimage to Sumiyoshi (Miotsukushi)
Unknown Artist, Muromachi period, dated 1516

The fourteenth of a series of 54 backing sheets mounted in an album; ink and color on paper

16th centuryJapanese
Text folio with an illuminated heading (text recto; text  with an illuminated heading verso of folio 330), from a manuscript of the Kulliyat of Sa‘di”.
Manuscripts
Text folio with an illuminated heading (text recto; text with an illuminated heading verso of folio 330), from a manuscript of the Kulliyat of Sa‘di”.
Unknown Artist, 16th century

Ink, colors, and gold on paper

16th centuryPersian
Battle Between Ghatotkacha and Karna, illustrated folio from a manuscript of the Mahabharata
Manuscripts
Battle Between Ghatotkacha and Karna, illustrated folio from a manuscript of the Mahabharata
Unknown Artist, c. 1670

Ink, opaque watercolor and gold on paper

17th centuryIndian
Manuscript of the Gulistan by Sa`di
Manuscripts
Manuscript of the Gulistan by Sa`di
Unknown Artist, 16th-18th century

Text, ink, opaque watercolor and gold on paper

16th-18th centuryPersian
Folio 5 from a Fragment of a Qur'an: Sura 4: 25 (recto), Sura 4: 25-26 (verso)
Manuscripts
Folio 5 from a Fragment of a Qur'an: Sura 4: 25 (recto), Sura 4: 25-26 (verso)
Unknown Artist, 13th century

Ink, opaque watercolor and gold on paper

13th centuryEgyptian
A wedding ritual celebrated by women of the palace (painting, recto), illustration from a Ramayana series
Manuscripts
A wedding ritual celebrated by women of the palace (painting, recto), illustration from a Ramayana series
Unknown Artist, 18th - 19th century

Opaque watercolor on paper

18th-19th centuryIndian
Lower Cover for "Buddhist Manuscript: Pancaraksa with Decorated Wooden Sutra Covers"
Manuscripts
Lower Cover for "Buddhist Manuscript: Pancaraksa with Decorated Wooden Sutra Covers"
Unknown Artist, late 18th century

Wood with polychromy

18th centuryNepalese
Folio from an Illustrated Manuscript of a Compendium of Knowledge (Jung), made for Shah Sulayman
Manuscripts
Folio from an Illustrated Manuscript of a Compendium of Knowledge (Jung), made for Shah Sulayman
Unknown Artist, c. 1669-1670

Ink, opaque watercolor and gold on paper

17th centuryPersian
Rustam Slays Khaqan of Chin (text recto; painting verso of folio 200), Illustrated folio from a manuscript of the Shahnama by Firdawsi | Harvard Art Museums | KenAI