"The Final Joust of the Rooks: Gudarz Versus Piran", Folio 346r from the Shahnama (Book of Kings) of Shah Tahmasp

Author Abu'l Qasim Firdausi Iranian
 Painting attributed to Qasim ibn 'Ali Iranian
 Workshop director Aqa Mirak Iranian

Not on view

The artist has captured the essentials of this tragic story with delicate sensitivity. The Iranian Gudarz has wounded the old Turanian warrior Piran, but in respect for his seasoned enemy, has offered him safe passage to the Turanian army. Piran, seen through a gap in the rocks, refuses this, preferring the inevitable warrior’s death to surrender. The grooms in the foreground frame the scene, in which the poses of the two adversaries—Gudarz in pursuit, Piran skulking up the mountain—give visual expression to the essential dilemma of the story.

"The Final Joust of the Rooks: Gudarz Versus Piran", Folio 346r from the Shahnama (Book of Kings) of Shah Tahmasp, Abu'l Qasim Firdausi (Iranian, Paj ca. 940/41–1020 Tus), Opaque watercolor, ink, silver, and gold on paper

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