The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Fantastic creatures in Islamic painting

Free in Room 34 from April October 2008

Islamic writing is full of fantastic beasts. From angels to dragons, artists have shown many strange creatures on Islamic pottery, on metalwork, in manuscripts, even on buildings.

The paintings in this display come from India, Iran and Central Asia and date from around 1400 to 1900 AD. Some of the paintings are taken from well-known epics (long poems) and tell the stories of heroes fighting monsters and demons.

Above, the hero and ruler Bahram Gur slays a dragon. To the right, the hero Rustam kneels in wait behind a tree for the ‘Black Divinity’.

Other paintings were produced just as beautiful pictures on their own. These were gathered together in sumptuous albums for princely people to look at. The one below shows a group of dancing demons having a party in the clouds.

These paintings are free to view in the Islamic Gallery, Room 34, until October 2008.

This display is featured in our Persia family trail.
Download the Persia family trail (Word, 1,255 kb)