string(20) "edanmdm:fsg_F1932.32" Folio from a Divan (collected poems) by Sultan Ahmad Jalayir (d.1410); recto: Gathering of scholars; verso: text - National Museum of Asian Art
Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art National Museum of Asian Art
Toggle Menu Search

Site Search

The Collections and Archives

Search The Collections

Folio from a Divan (collected poems) by Sultan Ahmad Jalayir (d.1410); recto: Gathering of scholars; verso: text

Detail of a pattern
Image 1 of 2
IIIF

Terms of Use

Usage Conditions Apply

At A Glance

  • Period

    ca.1400

  • Geography

    Baghdad, Iraq

  • Material

    Ink, color and gold on paper

  • Dimension

    H x W: 29.5 x 20.3 cm (11 5/8 x 8 in)

  • Accession Number

    F1932.32

  • EDAN ID

    edanmdm:fsg_F1932.32

Object Details

  • Description

    Detached folio from a Divan (Collected poems) by Sultan Ahmad Jalayir; text: Persian in black nasta'liq script, headings in Arabic in gold, red and blue nasta'liq; recto: Gathering of scholars, two columns, 14 lines; verso: text, two columns, 13 lines, 51 lines of marginal text; one of a group of 9: the manuscript, its separated cover (F 1932.29), and 7 detached folios (F1932.30-31, F1932.33-37) are accessed separately.

  • Provenance

    From at least 1912-at least 1926
    Fredrik Robert Martin (1868-1933), purchased from unidentified dealer in Constantinople [1]
    About 1926-1931
    Ownership information unknown
    From at least 1931-1932
    Jacob Hirsch, Ph.D., New York, method of acquisition unknown [2]
    From 1932
    The Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from Dr. Jacob Hirsch, New York [3]
    Notes:
    [1] See “Miniatures from the Period of Timur in Manuscripts of the Poems of Sultan Ahmad Jalair” [book] (Vienna: printed for the author, 1926), p. 11, pl. III. See also p. 27, where Martin recounts buying the manuscript in Constantinople in November 1912. It is unclear when, or to whom, he sold it. Martin was a Swedish diplomat, scholar, collector, art historian and author. Martin documented his journeys in numerous books.
    [2] See Laurence Binyon, J.V.S. Wilkinson and Basil Grey, “Persian Miniature Painting: Including a Critical Descriptive catalogue of the Miniatures Exhibited at Burlington House, January-March, 1931” [book] (London: Oxford University Press, 1933), p. 63 no. 36. The manuscript is “Lent by Jacob Hirsch, Geneva”, and “The last eight pages have the borders filled with line drawings and touched with gold and light colour. (These were shown separately at the Exhibition, mounted and framed.)”.
    Dr. Jacob Hirsch (1874-1955) was a collector of coins, medals, and classical art, as well as a dealer of archaeological objects. He had an eponymous gallery in New York, as well as businesses in Switzerland and Paris.
    See purchase file F1932.29 for J.E. Lodge letter to Dr. J. Hirsch dated April 9, 1932, wherein Lodge writes that he would come to New York to see the manuscript, implying it is already in the U.S. See also January 4, 1932 letter from M. Aga-Oglu, of the Detroit Institute of Arts, to Dr. Hirsch, noting that he had studied the manuscript and was enclosing it, with the miniatures, for return to Hirsch.
    [3] The Freer Gallery of Art paid Dr. Jacob Hirsch in installments, the first on August 1, 1932, and the last on July 3, 1933, and marked approved on June 28, 1932. See object file for copy of invoices.
    Research completed December 16, 2022

  • Collection

    Freer Gallery of Art Collection

  • Exhibition History

    Arts of the Islamic World (May 3, 1998 to January 3, 2016)
    From the Hand of Mani (January 18, 1985 to July 5, 1985)
    The Brush of the Masters: Drawings from Iran (October 14, 1978 to May 30, 1979)
    Untitled Exhibition, Islamic Manuscripts (May 1, 1945 to September 25, 1947)
    Untitled Exhibition, Persian Paintings and Ceramics (May 5, 1933 to January 9, 1945)
    International Exhibition of Persian Art (January 7 to March 7, 1931)

  • Previous custodian or owner

    Fredrik Robert Martin (1868-1933)
    Dr. Jacob Hirsch (1874?-1955)

  • Origin

    Baghdad, Iraq

  • 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

  • 1050 Independence Ave. SW
    Washington, DC 20013
    202.633.1000

© 2024 Smithsonian Institution