The figure of a Turkomen warrior, born to the saddle and inseparable from his mount, epitomizes the qualities of rugged independence, self reliance, toughness, endurance, and courage, admired down to this day, but to his more sedentary, urban contemporaries the additional, more fearsome and alarming qualities of ruthlessness, mercilessness, and cruelty. The leaf has been cut off at the top, suggesting that it once contained another or other drawings. The probability is, then, that this drawing functioned as a model, in spite of its finished appearance. The semi-circle at the upper left would appear to be half of an erased seal.
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Artwork Details
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Title:Turkomen Horseman
Date:16th century
Geography:Attributed to Iran
Medium:Ink, transparent and opaque watercolor, and gold on paper
Dimensions:H. 3 7/16 in. (8.7 cm) W. 3 1/4 in. (8.3 cm)
Classification:Codices
Credit Line:Bequest of George D. Pratt, 1935
Object Number:45.174.7
Turkomen Horseman
The sturdy independence of the Turkomen warrior, born to the saddle and inseparable from his horse, must have been as much admired as he was probably feared in the urban Iranian world. The horse's eye is rolled back and his ears are also turned back toward his rider, reinforcing the impression of the fine-tuned communication between man and mount. The high cheekbones, slant of the eyes, and wispy mustache and beard of the figure, as well as the tall cap with the turban cloth wrapped around its base, identify his ethnic origins. The high wooden saddle is also characteristic of the steppe, as is the horse's knotted tail, which, however, appears in depictions of horses as early as the Seljuq period; although by now (the sixteenth century) it had become an artistic cliché, it is still a feature identified with the steppe. Interestingly, the whip held by the horseman is not the usual short whip with a long thong that had come to be associated with Turkomens or Mongols, but more of a quirt with a split end, a shape with a long Iranian tradition.
The completion of such details as the subtly rendered dappled coat of the horse gives the drawing a finished appearance; however, the simplicity of the sure, firm outlines suggests that the drawing may have been used as a model. The cutting off of the leaf at the top indicates the possibility of a further drawing or drawings on the rest of the sheet. The hemispherical shape at the upper left would appear to be an erased seal.
Renditions of Turkomen horsemen were popular in Iranian art and there are a number showing galloping Turkomen engaged in hunting or falconry.[1] Such self-contained figures as this horse and rider are, somewhat surprisingly, rare.
[Swietochowski and Babaie 1989]
Footnotes:
1. Atil, Esin. The Brush of the Masters: Drawings from Iran and India. Exhibition catalogue. The Freer Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1978, fig. 11, called late 15th century but in fact probably late 16th or early 17th century where the horseman is carrying the usual whip mentioned above.
George D. Pratt, New York (by 1933–d. 1935); Vera Amherst Hale Pratt, New York (life interest 1935–45)
Palm Beach, FL. The Society of the Four Arts. "Loan to the Society of the Four Arts, Palm Beach, Fl," February 2, 1962–February 27, 1962, no catalogue.
Bloomington. Indiana University. "Islamic Art Across the World," June 18, 1970–October 1, 1970, no. 79.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Persian Drawings in The Metropolitan Museum of Art," September 13–December 31, 1989, no. 4.
Bowie, Theodore Robert. "An Exhibition Prepared by Theodore Bowie." In Islamic Art Across the World. Vol. no. 1970/3. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Art Museum, June 17 to Oct. 1, 1970. no. 79.
Swietochowski, Marie, and Sussan Babaie. Persian Drawings in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1989. no. 4, pp. 18–19, ill. pl. 4 (b/w).
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