"Umar Converts to Islam," Folio from a Hamla-yi Haidari (Attack of the Lion)
Not on view
This illustrated folio is from a Shi'i epic recounting the life of 'Ali, the Prophet's son-in-law and, according to Shi'i belief, the legitimate successor to the Prophet. It depicts the Prophet, who wears a white face-veil at the center of the composition, conversing with ‘Umar, whose right eye has been scratched out by a previous owner of the manuscript; ‘Ali is seated in the foreground surrounded by members of the Quraysh tribe. The style and palette are consistent with paintings of the first half of the nineteenth century. Shi'i epics were modeled on the Shahnama, replacing the celebrated hero Rustam with 'Ali. They were a popular genre in the Qajar period although only a few manuscripts survive, making this a rare example.
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