Folio from a Shahnama (Book of kings) by Firdawsi (d.1020); recto: text, Rustam came before Kavus after spying on Sohrab; verso: illustration and text, Sohrab summons Hajir and surveys the Persian camp

citation

Detached folio from a dispersed copy of the Shahnama (Book of kings) by Firdawsi; text: Persian in black naskh script; recto: text: Rustam came before Kavus after spying on Sohrab, 6 columns, 29 lines; verso: illustration and text: Sohrab summons Hajir and surveys the Persian camp, 6 columns, 18 lines; one of a group of 6 folios.
Border: The text is set in gold, red, green and blue rulings on cream-colored paper.

Historical period(s): Il-Khanid dynasty, Mongol period, early 14th century

Medium: Ink, opaque watercolor and gold on paper

Dimensions: H x W (overall): 25 x 18.2 cm (9 13/16 x 7 3/16 in)

Geography: Probably Iran

Credit Line: Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment

Accession Number: F1945.24.1

On View Location: Currently not on view

Classification(s): Manuscript

Type: Detached manuscript folio

Keywords: Il-Khanid dynasty (1256 - 1353), Iran, Mongol period (1220 - 1380), naskh script, Rustam, Shahnama, Sohrab, WWII-era provenance

Provenance

To 1945
H. Kahn Monif (died 1968), Persian Antique Gallery, New York, NY, to 1945 [1]

From 1945
Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from H. Kahn Monif in 1945

Notes:

[1] Undated folder sheet note. For additional information, see Freer Gallery of Art Purchase List after 1920, Collections Management Office.

Previous Owner(s): H. Kahn Monif died 1968

Description: Detached folio from a dispersed copy of the Shahnama (Book of kings) by Firdawsi; text: Persian in black naskh script; recto: text: Rustam came before Kavus after spying on Sohrab, 6 columns, 29 lines; verso: illustration and text: Sohrab summons Hajir and surveys the Persian camp, 6 columns, 18 lines; one of a group of 6 folios.
Border: The text is set in gold, red, green and blue rulings on cream-colored paper.

Published References

Marianna Shreve Simpson. The Illustration of an Epic: The Earliest Shahnama Manuscripts. Outstanding Dissertations in the Fine Arts New York and London. pp. 94, 108.
Abolqasem Ferdowsi. The Shahnameh: The Persian Book of Kings. New York. pp. 198-202.