Mathnavi heading folio from the Yusuf u Zulaykha, in the Haft Awrang (Seven thrones) by Jami (d. 1492)

Object Details

• Calligrapher

  Muhhib Ali

• Artist

  Illumination by Abdullah Shirazi

• Description

  Folio from the Yusuf u Zulaykha from the Haft awrang (Seven thrones) by Jami; one of nine sarlawhs from the Haft awrang (F1946.12.1verso, F1946.12.47 verso, F1946.12.70 verso, F1946.12.84 verso, F1946.12.140 verso, F1946.12.182 verso, F1946.12.200 verso, F1946.12.225 verso, F1946.12.273 verso); text: Persian in black nasta'liq script; recto: blank, gold-sprinkled; verso: sarlawh with inscription, illuminated headings in red, black and blue, gold column dividers, four columns, fifteen lines of text, one of a group of 304 folios.

  Border: The verso is set in multicolored rulings on a paper with birds, flowers and leaves stenciled in pink, outlined in gold.

• Inscriptions

  The central medallion of the title piece (unwan): "this book that is Yusuf and Zulaykha in name, its black writing is fragrant like the curls and the locks of the beloved; its images [are] colorful like the lips adorned with youthful down, it is a poem that conveys a message from the Divine."

• Provenance

  To 1946

  Hagop Kevorkian (1872-1962), New York. [1]

  From 1946

  Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from Hagop Kevorkian, New York. [2]

  Notes:

  [1] Object file, undated folder sheet note. See also, Freer Gallery of Art Purchase List after 1920, Collections Management Office.

  [2] See note 1.

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Arts of the Islamic World (May 3, 1998 to January 3, 2016)

  The Seven Thrones of Jami: A Princely Manuscript from Iran (June 28, 1997 to March 29, 1998)

  Untitled Exhibition, Institute of Fine Arts, Detroit, 1930 (1930)

• Previous custodian or owner

  Hagop Kevorkian (1872-1962)

• Origin

  Iran

• Credit Line

  Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment

• Type

  Manuscript

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

  There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

  The information presented on this website may be revised and updated at any time as ongoing research progresses or as otherwise warranted. Pending any such revisions and updates, information on this site may be incomplete or inaccurate or may contain typographical errors. Neither the Smithsonian nor its regents, officers, employees, or agents make any representations about the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the information on the site. Use this site and the information provided on it subject to your own judgment. The National Museum of Asian Art welcomes information that would augment or clarify the ownership history of objects in their collections.

Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1700s, 1710s, 1720s, 1500s, 1610s, 1600s, 1590s, 1540s, 1650s, 1530s, 1640s, 1520s, 1630s, 1510s, 1620s, 1580s, 1730s, 1690s, 1570s, 1680s, 1560s, 1670s, 1550s, 1660s

• Name

  Kevorkian, Hagop

• Place

  India

• Topic

  S?afavid dynasty, 1501-1736, Art, Yusuf, Haft awrang, Zulaykha, Arts of the Islamic World, Illumination, Poetry

• Culture

  Muslims, Iranians

• Language

  Nasta?li-q script

• Object Type

  Manuscripts