SIGNED SAYYID RIDHA IBN MIHR ABU TALIB AL-HUSAYNI, SAFAVID IRAN, DATED DHU'L-HIJJA AH 1045/MAY-JUNE 1636 AD

Details

ABU'L-QASIM FIRDAWSI (D.1025): SHAHNAMA
SIGNED SAYYID RIDHA IBN MIHR ABU TALIB AL-HUSAYNI, SAFAVID IRAN, DATED DHU'L-HIJJA AH 1045/MAY-JUNE 1636 AD
Persian manuscript on paper, 531ff. plus three flyleaves, each folio with 26ll. black nasta'liq arranged in four columns, section headings in red nasta'liq in panels across central two columns, set within gold and black rules, catchwords, the opening bifolio with later illuminated shamsas with the title of the book and a dedication to Shah Abbas II (r.1642-66), the following folio with gold and polychrome illuminated headband introducing Baysunghur's preface, a similar illuminated headpiece at the opening of the poem, with 55 gouache quarter-page illustrations, the colophon signed and dated, in Safavid-style gilt stamped leather binding with flap with gold drawings of animals and trees around central medallion, the doublures brown leather with decoupé central medallion, overall very good condition
Text panel 11 ¼ x 6 ½in. (28.5 x 16.6cm.); folio 14 ¾ x 9 5/8in. (37.4 x 24.5cm.)

Provenance

Christie's London, 21 November 1986, lot 63

Conditions of sale

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Lot Essay

The numerous illustrations in this manuscript include some of the most celebrated and oft-illustrated stories in the Shahnama, such as Rustam slaying the White Div, the duel between Rustam and Sohrab, and the feats of marksmanship of Bahram Gur. The large scale of the figures, bright colours, and many of the details of dress can be compared with the Shahnama illustrated by Mu'in Musavvir, probably produced in Isfahan around the year 1660, which is in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (acc.no.1974.290.43). The more rapidly-executed paintings in this manuscript, which sacrifice finesse for pictorial impact, however, suggest a provincial origin.

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