"Marriage of Khusrau and Shirin", Folio 104 from a Khamsa (Quintet) of Nizami of Ganja

The colophon of the manuscript from which this folio comes establishes that the book was copied by Sultan Muhammad Nur in A.H. 931/1524–25 A.D., a date that also appears in an architectural inscription on one of its paintings. This concurrence suggests that the work was copied and illustrated at almost the same time. Since Sultan Muhammad Nur spent most of his life in Herat, the manuscript was probably produced there. The Timurid dynasty had officially ended in 1506 with the death of its last effective ruler, but aspects of its artistic and literary culture survived for several decades. While some of the illustrations in the manuscript are formulaic, others continue the interest in portraiture initiated in Timurid Herat.

Two scenes from the life of Khusrau Parviz, the hero of the Khamsa’s second section, are of particular interest. In the one shown in this catalogue (13.228.7.4, fol. 64a), depicting an open-air court reception, the importance of the enthroned ruler is stressed by the colorful canopy over his head and the elaborately patterned carpet under his throne. The faces of some of the courtiers who stand beside or below his throne have a portraitlike specificity, including that of the bearded man holding a piece of paper in his raised left hand while a youth applies ink to the ring on his extended right hand. These actions identify the man as a chancery scribe entrusted with the transcription and sealing of official correspondence. His unusual prominence implies that he may have been the patron of the manuscript, but further research is needed to link either him or the seated ruler with any specific person.

The other painting of particular interest, this folio (13.228.7.6, fol. 104a) contains the date of A.H. Rajab 931/April–May 1525 A.D. and celebrates the union of Khusrau and Shirin, who are seated within an ornately decorated palace. The facade of the building is inscribed with verses appropriate to the occasion that extol the "lofty chamber of nuptial bliss." In addition, the inscription contains puns on the name Shirin, which means "sweetness," comparing Khusrau’s bride to rosewater and sugar.

The elaborate leather binding of the manuscript also links it to the bookmaking traditions of Timurid Herat. The exterior covers depict a landscape inhabited by birds and animals, a common theme on book bindings since the mid-fifteenth century. Inscriptions impressed in cartouches around the periphery of the outer binding allude to the text it encloses, the Khamsa of Nizami. Geometric and vegetal filigree patterns of cut-leather, silhouetted against a blue paper ground, appear on the interior of the covers.

Priscilla P. Soucek in [Ekhtiar, Soucek, Canby, and Haidar 2011]

F. R. Martin (Swedish), Sweden; Alexander Smith Cochran, Yonkers, NY (until 1913; gifted to MMA)

New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Gold," April 14–September 9, 1973, no catalogue.

Valentiner, William Reinhold. "The Cochran Collection of Persian Manuscripts." Museum of Metropolitan Art Bulletin, old series, vol. 8 (1913). pp. 80–86.

Dimand, Maurice S. Persian Miniature Paintings, Gallery of Art, (1956). pp. 24–25, ill. pl. IX (color).

"Gold." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin vol. 31, no. 2 (Winter 1972/1973). pp. 69–121.

Chelkowski, Peter J. "Tales from the Khamseh of Nizami." In Mirror of the Invisible World. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1975. pp. 40–45, ill. no. 4 (color).

Brend, Barbara. "Illustrations to Amir Khusrau's Khamsa." In Perspectives on Persian Painting. New York: RoutledgeCurzon, 2003. p. 190.

"Inscriptions on Architecture in Early Safavid Paintings of the Metropolitan Museum." Metropolitan Museum Journal vol. 53 (2018). p. 32, ill. fig.7 (color).