Folio from a Khamsa (Quintet) of Amir Khusraw Dihlavi; the traitorous vizier tries to make love to the queen

Object Details

• Author

  Amir Khusraw Dihlavi (1253-1325)

• School/Tradition

  Pre-Mughal school

• Provenance

  ?-?

  Demotte, Inc., Paris, France and New York, NY, method of acquisition unknown [1]

  At least 1957-1959

  Heeramaneck Galleries (active 1928-1964), New York, NY, method of acquisition unknown [2]

  From 1959

  Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from Heeramaneck Galleries [3]

  Notes:

  [1] See Milo Beach, “The Imperial Image: Paintings for the Mughal Court,” (Washington, DC and Ahmedabad, India: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery and Mapin International Inc., 2012), cat. 2a, 2c, p. 45-46. The provenance for F1959.1 and F1959.3 is described as “Ex-collection: Heeramaneck; Demotte.”

  [2] See Freer Gallery of Art Vault Card, V101.57a-m, copy in object file. The object was transferred from the Heeramaneck Galleries to the Freer Gallery of Art for acquisition consideration on May 28, 1957.

  See letter from H. Elise Buckman, Secretary to the Director, to Nasli Heeramaneck, dated May 28, 1957, copy in object file. The F1959.1 to F1959.4 were transferred from the Heeramaneck Galleries to the Freer Gallery of Art for acquisition consideration on May 28, 1957.

  Heeramaneck Galleries in New York, NY owned and operated by Nasli M. (1902-1971) and Alice N. Heeramaneck (née Arvine) (1910-1993). The Heeramaneck’s were dealers and collectors of Pre-Columbian and Asian art. Nasli Heeramaneck began his career as a dealer in Paris during the 1920s and relocated to New York, NY in 1927. In 1939, Nasli married Alice Arvine, an American portrait painter from New Haven, CT. Nasli founded Heeramaneck Galleries in New York, NY by 1928. He began to retire in 1964 and liquidated some of the gallery’s stock at auction at Parke-Barnet, New York in 1964 and 1965. Many objects from the Heeramaneck collection were either purchased or donated to American museums. Items from their collection may be found in The British Museum; the Cleveland Museum of Art; Los Angeles County Museum; The Metropolitan Museum of Art; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; National Museum of New Delhi; Virginia Museum of Fine Arts; and Yale University.

  [3] See object file for copy of the Heeramaneck Galleries invoice to Freer Gallery of Art, dated February 16, 1959, and marked approved on February 6, 1958. Payment was later approved on February 18, 1959. F1959.1 to F1959.4 are described as “Persian miniature[s]” of a “Prince and lady,” “King, Vizier, and 2 attendants,” “Majnun at Laila’s Tomb,” and “Two men at stove,” respectively.

  Research updated November 30, 2023

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Arts of the Indian Subcontinent and the Himalayas (October 16, 2004 to January 3, 2016)

  Masterworks of Indian Painting (December 13, 1997 to June 13, 1998)

  South and South East Asian Art (May 9, 1993 to February 7, 2000)

  The Arts of South Asia (May 13, 1985 to December 2, 1985)

  The Imperial Image: Painting for the Mughal Court (September 25, 1981 to 30 March 1982)

  Indian Art (January 1, 1963 to January 28, 1981)

• Previous custodian or owner

  Demotte, Inc.

  Heeramaneck Galleries (active 1928-1964)

• Origin

  India

• Credit Line

  Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment

• Type

  Manuscript

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1400s

• Name

  Demotte, Inc., Heeramaneck Galleries

• Place

  India

• Topic

  South Asian and Himalayan Art, Art, Khamsa, Queen, Delhi Sultanate (1206 - 1526), Vizier

• Culture

  Himalayan peoples, South Asians

• Language

  Nasta?li-q script

• Object Type

  Manuscripts