Folio from a Rawdat al-safa (Garden of felicity) by Mirkhwand (d. 1498); verso: illumination and text; recto: seals

Detached folio from a dispersed copy of a Rawdat al-safa fi sirat al-anbiya’ wa-al -muluk wa-al-khulafa (Garden of purity on the lives of the prophets, kings, and caliphs) by Muhammad b. Khwandshah (Mirkhwand); text: Persian and Arabic in black nasta’liq script; recto: seals, inscription (flyleaf); verso: right-hand half of a double-page frontispiece now separate from its facing folio (S1986.374), headings in white, one column, eleven lines of text; one of a group of three folios.
Border: The text is set in red and blue rulings with illuminated side panels and cartouches and an illuminated outer frame on cream-colored paper.

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Maker(s)
Author: Khwandshah (Mirkhwand)
Historical period(s)
Safavid period, early 17th century
Medium
Ink, opaque watercolor and gold on paper
Dimensions
H x W (overall): 37.7 x 23.8 cm (14 13/16 x 9 3/8 in)
Geography
Iran
Credit Line
Purchase — Smithsonian Unrestricted Trust Funds, Smithsonian Collections Acquisition Program, and Dr. Arthur M. Sackler
Collection
Arthur M. Sackler Collection
Accession Number
S1986.373
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Manuscript
Type

Detached manuscript folio

Keywords
Henri Vever collection, history, illumination, Iran, Rawzat al-safa, Safavid period (1501 - 1722), seal
Provenance
Provenance research underway.
Description

Detached folio from a dispersed copy of a Rawdat al-safa fi sirat al-anbiya' wa-al -muluk wa-al-khulafa (Garden of purity on the lives of the prophets, kings, and caliphs) by Muhammad b. Khwandshah (Mirkhwand); text: Persian and Arabic in black nasta'liq script; recto: seals, inscription (flyleaf); verso: right-hand half of a double-page frontispiece now separate from its facing folio (S1986.374), headings in white, one column, eleven lines of text; one of a group of three folios.
Border: The text is set in red and blue rulings with illuminated side panels and cartouches and an illuminated outer frame on cream-colored paper.

Inscription(s)

Flyleaf recto, volumes one and two of Rawdat al-safa. The date of the month of Rabi'[?]. Intended for the library [?] passed; volumes one and two of Rawdat al-safa are five hundred and sixty-two folios; two seals: (recto, square) Abdul-Wahhab al-Musawi. Will not God defend His slave? [From Sura XXXIX: 36]; (square) [illegible].

Published References
  • Glenn D. Lowry, Milo Cleveland Beach, Elisabeth West FitzHugh, Susan Nemanzee, Janet Snyder. An Annotated and Illustrated Checklist of the Vever Collection. Washington and Seattle. cat. 232, pp. 196-197.
Collection Area(s)
Arts of the Islamic World
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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