Object number1976.68.11

Firdausi Presenting His Shahnama to Mahmud of Ghazni

Datec. 1595

attributed to Basawan (Indian, active c. 1556–1600)

CultureIndian

MediumOpaque watercolor and gold on paper

DimensionsImage (with text): 11 x 7 3/4 in. (27.9 x 19.7 cm)
Sheet: 14 x 9 15/16 in. (35.5 x 25.3 cm)

Credit LineGift of Ruth Lamb Atkinson, class of 1918

On View

Not on view

Period16th c

Classification(s)

Drawings and Watercolors

Vassar Exhibitions

India in Miniature: Works from the Permanent Collection

Exhibition HistoryArt of India: Convergence of Cultures from the Romans to the Raj, Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center, Vassar College Poughkeepsie, NY, January 2 - March 18, 1997;

India in Miniature: Works from the Permanent Collection, Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center, Vassar College Poughkeepsie, NY, January 24 - April 23, 2017

Label TextOne of Persia’s most acclaimed epic poems, the massive Shahnama (Book of Kings) provides an account of leaders both mythical and historical. Authored by Firdausi, the poem is considered a touchstone of Persian literature and culture. Here, Firdausi, standing in a blue outer robe, presents Mahmud of Ghazni (who reigned in the 10th century), the patron of the epic, with the document. The Shahnama, and the style of leadership it celebrates, informed the formation of the Mughal Empire (16th–19th centuries) in north India, where Persian settlers and their descendants sought to establish a dynasty of ideal kingship.

DescriptionDepiction of Mahmud of Ghazni seated atop a gold dais with attendants and courtiers surrounding him as he receives a scroll, the Shahnama (Book of Kings) from Firdausi and another individual. The figures are colorfully clothed and the interior has a carpet with floral and gold details. Above the scene is a block of text separated into columns.

Terms

men (male humans)

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email loebcollections@vassar.edu