SAFAVID IRAN, 16TH CENTURY

Details

RUSTAM UNSADDLES AFRASIYAB
SAFAVID IRAN, 16TH CENTURY
From a Shahnama of Firdawsi, opaque pigments heightened with gold on paper, with 2ll. black nasta'liq above arranged in two columns and 9ll. below in four columns, the reverse with 23II. of black nasta'liq within double gold intercolumnar rules, one heading in gold, laid down on card borders
Painting 5 ½ x 5in. (14 x 12.6cm.); text panel 9 ½ x 8in. (24 x 20.4cm.); folio 13 x 8in. (33 x 20.3cm.)

Provenance

Arthur Millier (1893-1975),
Thence by descent until 2015, when acquired by the present owner

Conditions of sale

Brought to you by

Sara Plumbly Director, Head of Department

Check the condition report or get in touch for additional information about this

splumbly@christies.com +44 (0)20 7389 2374

If you wish to view the condition report of this lot, please sign in to your account.

View condition report

Lot Essay

In the centre of the field, Rustam, astride a pink Rakhsh, grasps his nemesis Afrasiyab, the king of Turan, by his belt and unsaddles him. In the narrative, the belt then breaks, and Afrasiyab is rescued by the Turanian soldiers. The painter's creativity is shown here through the scene's exceptional dynamism at the peak of the narrative's action - Afrasiyab's helmet has fallen off, while the surrounding melee is a flurry of whistling arrows and decapitated heads.

More from Art of the Islamic and Indian Worlds including Rugs and Carpets

View All