Folio from a Shahnama (Book of kings) by Firdawsi (d.1020); recto: text: he creation of the world, he creation of man, the creation of the sun and moon; verso: text: he Prophet Muhammad, the compilation of the Shahnama, the poet Daqiqi
Detached folio (left-hand frontispiece) from a dispersed copy of the Shahnama (Book of kings) by Firdawsi; text: Persian in black naskh script, headings red, blue and white outlined in black; recto: text, The creation of the world, The creation of man, The creation of the sun and moon, 4 columns, 22 lines; verso: text, Prophet Muhammad, the compilation of the Shahnama, the poet Daqiqi; 4 columns, 30 lines; one of a group of 12 folios. Patron: Qiwam al-Dawla wa'l-Din.
Border: The recto is set in red and black rulings with an illuminated border; the verso is set in red and black rulings on cream-colored paper.
Provenance:
Charles Vignier (1863-1934), Paris, France. [1]
To 1942
Henri Vever (1854-1942), Paris and Noyers, France. [2]
From 1942 to 1986
Family member, Paris and Boulogne, France, by inheritance from Henri Vever, Paris and Noyers, France. [3]
From 1986
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, purchased from a family member, Paris and Boulogne, France. [4]
Notes:
[1] See Susan Nemazee, "Appendix 7: Chart of Recent Provenance" in An Annotated and Illustrated Checklist of the Vever Collection, Glenn D. Lowry et al (Washington, DC: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; Seattle and London: University of Washington Press, 1988), p. 402.
[2] See note 1.
[3] See the Agreement for the Purchase and Sale of the Henri Vever Collection of January 9, 1986, Collections Management Office.
[4] See note 3.
Collection:
Arthur M. Sackler Collection
Exhibition History:
Nasta’liq: The Genius of Persian Calligraphy (September 13, 2014 to May 3, 2015)