Anthology

Manuscript; Anthology; text: Persian in black, white and red nasta’liq script; selections from Nizami’s Khamsa, Sanai’s Hadiqa al-haqiqa wa-sharia al-tariqa, Amir Khusraw Dihlavi’s Layla u Majnun, Hafiz’s Divan, and Sayf Asfar Begi’s Divan. The anthology also contains the Saqinama and several unidentified poems by Sa’di and Khaqani; 95 folios, 1 sarlawh (folio 1 verso), and 15 paintings (fols. 4 recto, 8 verso, 12 recto, 20 recto, 21 verso, 25 recto, 32 verso, 41recto, 46 recto, 56 verso, 59 verso, 72 recto, 74 verso, 92verso, 95recto).
Binding: The binding is of leather over paper pasteboards decorated with gilt block-stamped designs on the exterior covers; the doublures are of leather with a central medallion.

View right to left

Historical period(s)
Safavid period, early 17th century
Medium
Ink, opaque watercolor and gold on paper
Dimensions
H x W: 24.4 x 14.3 cm (9 5/8 x 5 5/8 in)
Geography
Iran
Credit Line
Purchase — Smithsonian Unrestricted Trust Funds, Smithsonian Collections Acquisition Program, and Dr. Arthur M. Sackler
Collection
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
Accession Number
S1986.41
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Manuscript
Type

Manuscript

Keywords
anthology, flower, Henri Vever collection, illumination, Iran, Safavid period (1501 - 1722), sarlawh
Provenance

From at least 1881
Compte de Gobineau, France. [1]

From at least 1899
Coutenceau. [2]

To 1942
Henri Vever (1854-1942), Paris and Noyers, France. [3]

From 1942 to 1986
Family member, Paris and Boulogne, France, by inheritance from Henri Vever, Paris and Noyers, France. [4]

From 1986
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, purchased from a family member, Paris and Boulogne, France. [5]

Notes:

[1] See Susan Nemazee, "Appendix 7: Chart of Recent Provenance" in An Annotated and Illustrated Checklist of the Vever Collection, Glenn D. Lowry et al (Washington, DC: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; Seattle and London: University of Washington Press, 1988), p. 400.

[2] See note 1.

[3] See note 1.

[4] See the Agreement for the Purchase and Sale of the Henri Vever Collection of January 9, 1986, Collections Management Office.

[5] See note 4.

Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)

Coutenceau
Compte de Gobineau
Henri Vever 1854-1942
Francois Mautin 1907-2003

Description

Manuscript; Anthology; text: Persian in black, white and red nasta'liq script; selections from Nizami’s Khamsa, Sanai’s Hadiqa al-haqiqa wa-sharia al-tariqa, Amir Khusraw Dihlavi’s Layla u Majnun, Hafiz’s Divan, and Sayf Asfar Begi’s Divan. The anthology also contains the Saqinama and several unidentified poems by Sa’di and Khaqani; 95 folios, 1 sarlawh (folio 1 verso), and 15 paintings (fols. 4 recto, 8 verso, 12 recto, 20 recto, 21 verso, 25 recto, 32 verso, 41recto, 46 recto, 56 verso, 59 verso, 72 recto, 74 verso, 92verso, 95recto).
Binding: The binding is of leather over paper pasteboards decorated with gilt block-stamped designs on the exterior covers; the doublures are of leather with a central medallion.

Published References
  • Coutenceau sale catalogue., 1899. cat. 12.
  • Glenn D. Lowry, Milo Cleveland Beach, Elisabeth West FitzHugh, Susan Nemanzee, Janet Snyder. An Annotated and Illustrated Checklist of the Vever Collection. Washington and Seattle. cat. 51, p. 39.
  • Fereshteh Daftari. The Influence of "Persian Art" on Gauguin, Matisse, and Kandinsky. Ann Arbor. pp. 175,177,185.
Collection Area(s)
Arts of the Islamic World
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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