Khamsa (Quintet) by Amir Khusraw Dihlavi (d.1325)

Manuscript; Khamsa by Amir Khusraw Dihlawi; Persian in black nasta’liq script; 198 folios with four sarlawhs (verso: 1,30,109,147), four dated colophons (29 recto, 78 recto,108 recto and 146 recto), and 7 paintings (41verso, 55 recto, 70 recto, 92 recto, 134 recto, 161verso and 187verso) attributed to Siyavush Beg or a close follower; seals (fols.1 recto, and 198 recto); standard page: four columns, 22 lines of text; headings in red.
Binding: The manuscript was originally bound in papier-mâché, the bounding has been removed, the manuscript is now bound in leather over paper pasteboards stamped with the name of Vever.

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Maker(s)
Artist: Siyavush Beg
Historical period(s)
Safavid period, November 1564 (Rabi' II 972 A.H.)
Medium
Opaque watercolor, ink, and gold on paper
Dimensions
H x W (overall): 23.3 x 17 cm (9 3/16 x 6 11/16 in)
Geography
Iran, Qazwin
Credit Line
Purchase — Smithsonian Unrestricted Trust Funds, Smithsonian Collections Acquisition Program, and Dr. Arthur M. Sackler
Collection
Arthur M. Sackler Collection
Accession Number
S1986.51
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Manuscript
Type

Manuscript

Keywords
Bahram Chubina, Henri Vever collection, Iran, Khamsa, Khusraw, percussion instrument, Safavid period (1501 - 1722)
Provenance

Possibly to 1907
Possibly Octave Marie Joseph Kérim Homberg Sr. (1844-1907), method of acquisition unknown [1]

Likely 1907-1931
Octave Marie Joseph Kérim Homberg Jr. (1876-1941), possibly by inheritance from his father, Octave Marie Joseph Kérim Homberg Sr. [2]

1931
Sale, Paris, Galerie Georges Petit, "Catalogue des tableaux anciens : objets d'art et de haute curiosité européens et orientaux ... la collection de Octave Homberg," June 3, 2, & 5, 1931, lot 90 [3]

1991-1942
Henri Vever (1854-1942), likely purchased at the Galerie Georges Petit sale in 1931[4]

1942-1947
Jeanne Louise Monthiers (1861-1947), bequest of Henri Vever [5]

1947-1986
Francois Mautin (1907-2003), bequest of Jeanne Louise Monthiers and Henri Vever [6]

From 1986
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery purchased from Francois Mautin [7]

Notes:

[1]Octave Homberg Senior was a Censor of the Bank of France before becoming the Director of the Société Générale, one of the oldest banks in France. He amassed a diverse collection of fine arts, which included medieval European sculpture,Islamic manuscripts, and objects. Upon his death, he bequeathed the majority of his collection to his son, Octave Homberg Jr. The rest of the collection was sold via auction at Galerie Georges Petit on May 11-16, 1908, in Paris, France.

[2] Octave Homberg Jr. was a French diplomat, banker, writer, and collector. As one of France's foremost financiers, he served as the French financial agent in the United States and part of the Anglo-French Commission. In the early 1930s, Homberg experienced/suffered financial trouble and in 1931 he sold most of his art collection, mostof which he had inherited from his father. It is is possible that Homberg Senior bequeathed this manuscript to his son, Homberg Jr., see note 1.

[3] Galerie Georges Petit, "Catalogue des tableaux anciens : objets d'art et de haute curiosité européens et orientaux ... la collection de Octave Homberg" [auction catalogue] (Paris, June 3-5, 1931), lot 90. See annotations from this auction on recto of last folio in manuscript.

[4] An accomplished French jeweler and collector, Henri Vever (1854-1942) amassed a large and impressive collection of works of art during his lifetime. His holdings in Japanese prints and Islamic arts of the books, especially from Iran and India, were among the most important assembled in the early twentieth century. This work was in Vever's collection at the time of his death in 1942.

[5] Upon Henri Vever's death on September 25, 1942, his wife, Jeanne Louise Monthiers inherited the work. See exhibits F and G of Agreement of Purchase and Sale of the Henri Vever Collection, January 9, 1986, copy in object file.

[6] Upon the death of Jeanne Louise Monthiers, as stipulated in the will of Henri Vever, the family's assets were divided evenly between his two grandchildren. His only grandson, Francois Mautin inherited the collection known as "The Henri Vever Collection of Oriental Art and Manuscripts Including Persian and Indian Art and Manuscripts." This work is part of that collection. See exhibits F and G as cited in note 5.

[7] The Arthur M. Sackler Gallery purchased the collection from Francois Mautin on January 9, 1986. See purchase agreement, copy in object file.

Research completed June 26, 2022.

Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)

Octave Homberg
Octave Marie Joseph Kérim Homberg Sr. 1844-1907
Henri Vever 1854-1942
Jeanne Louise Monthiers 1861-1947
Francois Mautin 1907-2003

Description

Manuscript; Khamsa by Amir Khusraw Dihlawi; Persian in black nasta'liq script; 198 folios with four sarlawhs (verso: 1,30,109,147), four dated colophons (29 recto, 78 recto,108 recto and 146 recto), and 7 paintings (41verso, 55 recto, 70 recto, 92 recto, 134 recto, 161verso and 187verso) attributed to Siyavush Beg or a close follower; seals (fols.1 recto, and 198 recto); standard page: four columns, 22 lines of text; headings in red.
Binding: The manuscript was originally bound in papier-mâché, the bounding has been removed, the manuscript is now bound in leather over paper pasteboards stamped with the name of Vever.

Inscription(s)

First flyleaf, bottom of page: "52" circled, written in pencil

First flyleaf,, top of page, left corner: "9" underlined in pencil

Second flyleaf, top of page: "rb bxx-" written in pencil

Second flyleaf, top of page: "No 90 Vente Octave Homberg Juin 1931" written in pencil

Second flyleaf, "Daté 1562 à Shiraz rb Bpx [underlined]" written in pencil

Second flyleaf, "Les cinq poèmes lyriques que Khosrau de Dehli (+1325) écrivit à l'imitation de ceux de Nizami" written in pencil

Second flyleaf, "7 miniatures" written in pencil

Second flyleaf, "11" circled, written in blue pencil over "12" circled written in pencil

Second flyleaf, "14" circled, written in pencil, erased

Last flyleaf, "Octave Homberg" written in pencil

Folio 198 recto, indicated that the manuscript belonged in A.H. 1235 (A.D. 1819-20) to the Beglarbegi of Qarabagh; seals: (flyleaf, oval) Muhammad Husayn b. Ghiyath al-Din Muhammad; (square) The sinful slave Muhammad Husayn; (fol.198 recto, square); His hopeful slave Nuqli Mammad[?] 34; say: He is God, the one!; God, the eternally besought of all!; He begetteth not nor was begotten; And there is none comparable unto him; [From Sura CXII: 1-4].

Published References
  • Octave Homberg. Publication title unknown. cat. 90, p. 48.
  • Glenn D. Lowry, Susan Nemanzee. A Jeweler's Eye: Islamic Arts of the Book from the Vever Collection. Washington and Seattle. cat. 38, pp. 138-139.
  • 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. 205, pp. 174-176.
Collection Area(s)
Arts of the Islamic World
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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