album;
painting;
drawing
- Museum number
- 1974,0617,0.15.23
- Description
-
Double portrait of a worshipping woman and a rubab player; two paintings mounted contiguously onto an album folio. Lefthand painting shows a woman performing puja, worshipping at a shrine with an attendant. Righthand painting shows a youth with frizzy black hair seated on a rock playing a stringed instrument. A large butterfly prepares to land on a flowering plant at the right and dark clouds swirl in the sky. The figure wears white boots, blue trousers decorated with gold arabesques, a gold long cap and a green jacket with an outsized orange and yellow sash. His arrow sheath and sword rest on the rock next to him. Plain green border. Signed. Album contains forty leaves of calligraphy and paintings.
Ink and opaque watercolour on paper. Album has lacquered covers decorated with a central flower design and floral border. Concertina-style (accordian-style) binding. Reads right to left.
- Production date
-
18thC (woman, left side)
-
1590 (circa; rabab player, right side)
- Dimensions
-
Height: 29.80 centimetres (album)
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Height: 29.50 centimetres (folio)
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Height: 13 centimetres (image)
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Width: 19.70 centimetres (album)
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Width: 19.50 centimetres (folio)
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Width: 20 centimetres (image)
- $Inscriptions
-
-
- Curator's comments
-
The soundbox of this rebab is covered with skin dyed green and the wooden 'shoulder' at the base of the neck is decorated with roundels of inlaid mother of pearl or ivory and ebony. The butterfly, flowers and swirling clouds all heighten the romantic impression made by this young dandy who has stopped to play a tune.
-
See 1974,0617,0.15 .1-.40 for all folios in this album.
- Location
- Not on display
- Exhibition history
-
Exhibited:
2015 11 Mar - 8 Jul, BM, G34, 'The Prince and the Pir: representations of dervishes and mysticism in Iran and India' 1974,0617,0.15.29 and 30 displayed
2013 - 2014 27 Sep - 12 Jan, Zurich, Museum Rietberg, 'The Fascination of Persia' 1974,0617,0.15.24 displayed
2007-2008 5 Oct-7 Jan, Paris, Musee du Louvre, 'The Song of the World: The Art of Safavid Iran 1501-1736'
- Acquisition date
- 1974
- Acquisition notes
- From an album (Or 1373) acquired by the British Museum in 1875 from Sir Charles Murray (1806-1895). Transferred from the Department of Oriental Manuscripts and Printed Books (OMPB) in 1974.
- Department
- Middle East
- Registration number
- 1974,0617,0.15.23
- Additional IDs
-
Miscellaneous number: OR 1373
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Miscellaneous number: OR 56
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Miscellaneous number: OR1373
