Folio from a Rawdat al-safa (Garden of felicity) by Mirkhwand (d. 1498); verso: illustration and text, Muhammad converses with Nestor; recto: text, On the events of the twenty-fifth years of Muhammad's birth, his trip to Damascus and his marriage to Khadijeh Kobra

Object Details

• Calligrapher

  Inayatullah al-katib al-Shirazi

• Author

  Khwandshah (Mirkhwand)

• Description

  Detached folio from a dispersed copy of a Rawdat al-safa fi sirat al-anbiya' wa-al-muluk wa-al-khulafa (Garden of purity on the lives of the prophets, kings, and caliphs) by Muhammad b. Khwandshah (known as Mirkhwand); text: Persian in black nasta'liq script; heading in gold; recto: text: On the events of the twenty-fifth years of Mohammad's birth, His trip to Damascus and his marriage to Khadija Kobra, one column, twenty-five lines; verso: illustration and text: Muhammad converses with Nestor; one of a group of twenty folios.

  Border: The painting is set in red, gold, and black rulings on a paper with landscape and animal motifs; the text is set in red, gold, and black rulings on cream-colored paper.

• Provenance

  ?-1942

  Henri Vever (1851-1942), method of acquisition unknown [1]

  1942-1947

  Jeanne Louise Monthiers (1861-1947), bequest of Henri Vever [2]

  1947-1986

  Francois Mautin (1907-2003), bequest of Jeanne Louise Monthiers and Henri Vever [3]

  From 1986

  The National Museum of Asian Art, by purchased from Francois Mautin [4]

  Notes:

  [1] An accomplished French jeweler and collector, Henri Vever 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. This object was in Vever's collection at the time of his death in 1942.

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

  [3] 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 object is part of that collection. See exhibits F and G as cited in note 3.

  [4] The Museum purchased the entirety of the collection from Francois Mautin on January 9, 1986. See purchase agreement, copy in object file. This work is part of the Museum’s Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection.

  Research updated on June 27, 2024

• Collection

  Arthur M. Sackler Collection

• Previous custodian or owner

  Henri Vever (1854-1942)

  Francois Mautin (1907-2003)

• 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

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• 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

  Mautin, Francois Albert, Vever, Henri

• Place

  Shiraz

• Topic

  S?afavid dynasty, 1501-1736, Muhammad, Art, Henri Vever collection, Rawzat al-safa, Arts of the Islamic World, History

• Culture

  Muslims, Iranians

• Object Type

  Manuscripts