"Rustam Seizes Afrasiyab by the Girdle and Lifts him from the Saddle", Folio from a Shahnama (Book of Kings)

Author Abu'l Qasim Firdausi Iranian

Not on view

The action here depicts Rustam on an orange horse as he grasps his enemy Afrasiyab and pulls him off his horse. To Rustam’s chagrin, the belt breaks, and Afrasiyab falls to the ground, where he is rescued by his allies. This painting comes from a copy of the highly Persianate Shahnama that was probably made in northern India. The paintings from this book were later cut out and placed in an album with brightly colored borders.

#6731. Overview: Sultanate Shahnama Paintings

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  1. 6731. Overview: Sultanate Shahnama Paintings
  2. 6731. Body Language: Curator's Introduction
"Rustam Seizes Afrasiyab by the Girdle and Lifts him from the Saddle", Folio from a Shahnama (Book of Kings), Abu'l Qasim Firdausi (Iranian, Paj ca. 940/41–1020 Tus), Main support: Ink, opaque watercolor, gold on paper
Margins: Ink and gold on dyed paper

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