Folio from a Shahnama (Book of kings) by Firdawsi (d.1020); recto: Bahram Gur slays a dragon in India, text: Bahram marries the daughter of Shangal, king of India; verso: text: Bahram Gur flees from India

Object Details

• Calligrapher

  Hasan ibn Muhammad ibn Ali ibn Husayni (known as) Mawsili

• Patron

  Qiwam al-Dawla wa'l-Din

• Description

  Detached folio from a dispersed copy of the Shahnama (Book of kings) by Firdawsi; text: Persian in black nasta'liq script; recto: illustration and text, Bahram Gur slays a dragon in India, text, Bahram marries the daughter of Shangal, king of India, 6 columns, 20 lines; verso: text, Bahram Gur flees from India, 6 columns, 30 lines; one of a group of twelve folios. Patron: Qiwan al-Dawla wa'l-Din.

  Border: The recto and verso are set in red and brown rulings on cream-colored paper.

• Provenance

  1341-?

  Qawam ud-dawla wa'l-din (ca. 1303-1353), vizier of Abu-Ishak, the Inju ruler of Fars commissioned in 1341 [1]

  1341-1932

  Gap in ownership knowledge

  ?-1932

  Indjoudjian Frères, method of acquisition unknown [2]

  1932

  Sale, Paris, Hôtel Drouot "Objets d'art proche-orient des grandes époques ... provenant de la collection de Indjoudjian" December 19, 1932, lot 22 [3]

  ?-1942

  Henri Vever (1854-1942), method of acquisition unknown [4]

  1942-1947

  Jeanne Louise Monthiers (1861-1947), bequest of Henri Vever [5]

  1947-1986

  Francois Mautin (1907-2003), bequest of Jeanne Louise Monthiers and Henri Vever [6]

  From 1986

  Arthur M. Sackler Gallery purchased from Francois Mautin [7]

  Notes:

  [1] See Glenn D. Lowry and Milo Cleveland Beach with Roya Marefat and Wheeler Thackston, "An Annotated and Illustrated Checklist of the Vever Collection" [book] (Washington, D.C. and Seattle: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery and University of Washington Press, 1988), 77.

  This folio belongs to a manuscript commissioned by Qawam ud-dawla wa'l-din in 1341. The manuscript was taken apart and dispersed in the early twentieth century.

  [2] See auction catalogue cited in note 2. Indjoudjian Frères was an antiquities dealership based in Paris and New York, owned by the Armenian-born brothers Agop (1871-1951) and Meguerditch (1884-1927).

  [3] See Hôtel Drouot "Objets d'art Proche-Orient des grandes époques ... provenant de la collection de Indjoudjian" [auction catalogue] (Paris : December 19, 1932), lot 22. The folio is described as « ROUSTEM combattant le DRAGON. Ces enluminures son parmi les plus belles d'un art fortement apparenté à celui de Rhagès. » The catalogue misidentified the figure.

  [4] An accomplished French jeweler and collector, Henri Vever (1854-1942) amassed a large and impressive collection of

  works of art during his lifetime. His holdings in Japanese prints and Islamic arts of the books, especially from Iran and India,

  were among the most important assembled in the early twentieth century.

  [5] Upon Henri Vever's death on September 25, 1942, his wife, Jeanne Louise Monthiers inherited the work. See exhibits F and G of Agreement of Purchase and Sale of the Henri Vever Collection, January 9, 1986, copy in object file.

  [6] Upon the death of Jeanne Louise Monthiers, as stipulated in the will of Henri Vever, the family's assets were divided evenly between his two grandchildren. His only grandson, Francois Mautin inherited the collection known as "The Henri Vever Collection of Oriental Art and Manuscripts Including Persian and Indian Art and Manuscripts." This work is part of that collection. See exhibits F and G as cited in note 5.

  [7] The Arthur M. Sackler Gallery purchased the entirety of the collection from Francois Mautin on January 9, 1986. See purchase agreement, copy in object file.

  Research completed May 4, 2022.

• Collection

  Arthur M. Sackler Collection

• Previous custodian or owner

  Francois Mautin (1907-2003)

  Jeanne Louise Monthiers (1861-1947)

  Henri Vever (1854-1942)

  Indjoudjian Freres

  Qiwam al-Dawla wa'l-Din

• Origin

  Shiraz, Iran

• Credit Line

  Purchase — Smithsonian Unrestricted Trust Funds, Smithsonian Collections Acquisition Program, and Dr. Arthur M. Sackler

• 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.

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1300s

• Name

  Mautin, Francois Albert, Indjoudjian Freres, Monthiers, Jeanne Louise, Vever, Henri, Qiwam al-Dawla wa'l-Din

• Place

  Shiraz

• Topic

  Art, Henri Vever collection, Inju dynasty (1335 - 1357), Archery, Arts of the Islamic World, Mongol period (1220 - 1380), Bahram Gur, Kings and rulers, Dragon, Shahnama, Epic literature

• Culture

  Muslims, Iranians

• Object Type

  Manuscripts