Harvard Art Museums > 1966.6: The Return from the Flight into Egypt Paintings with Calligraphy Collections Search Exit Deep Zoom Mode Zoom Out Zoom In Reset Zoom Full Screen Add to Collection Order Image Copy Link Copy Citation Citation"The Return from the Flight into Egypt (Muhammad Zaman) , 1966.6,” Harvard Art Museums collections online, Nov 27, 2024, https://hvrd.art/o/216250. Reuse via IIIF Toggle Deep Zoom Mode Download This object does not yet have a description. Identification and Creation Object Number 1966.6 People Muhammad Zaman, Persian Title The Return from the Flight into Egypt Classification Paintings with Calligraphy Work Type painting with calligraphy Date 1689 Places Creation Place: Middle East, Iran, Isfahan Period Safavid period Culture Persian Persistent Link https://hvrd.art/o/216250 Physical Descriptions Medium Ink, color and gold on paper Dimensions 21.6 x 14.5 cm (8 1/2 x 5 11/16 in.) frame: 48.6 x 38.4 x 2.5 cm (19 1/8 x 15 1/8 x 1 in.) Inscriptions and Marks inscription: upper and lower borders, ink on paper, Persian, in artist's hand Provenance Recorded Ownership History Fredrik Robert Martin, Florence, (by 1912). John Goelet, New York and London, (by 1966), gift; to the Fogg Museum, 1966. Acquisition and Rights Credit Line Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of John Goelet Accession Year 1966 Object Number 1966.6 Division Asian and Mediterranean Art Contact am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu Permissions The Harvard Art Museums encourage the use of images found on this website for personal, noncommercial use, including educational and scholarly purposes. To request a higher resolution file of this image, please submit an online request. Descriptions Description This painting is based on an engraving made by the Flemish artist Vosterman, after Rubens' work 'The Return from the Flight into Egypt'. It shows Mary, Joseph, and child Jesus returning to their homeland after their flight to Egypt. Two lines of Persian inscriptions written in nastaliq script can be seen on the top and bottom of the page. The inscription indicates that Muhammad Zaman finished it in August-September of 1689 in the capital city of Isfahan and it is dedicated to Isa (Jesus). Jesus is considered a great prophet in Islam and it is likely that the painting was made for a Christian patron, perhaps an Armenian in Julfa. The painting is done on paper and displays Muhammad Zaman's attempts at creating modeling, three-dimensionality, and perspective. The artist is known to have worked from European prints available in Iran at that time. Publication History F.R. Martin, The Miniature Painting and Painters of Persia, India and Turkey, from the 8th to the 18th century, B. Quaritch (London, England, 1912), vol. II, pl. 173 (top) Basil Gray, Persian Painting (1961), p. 170 Anthony Welch, Shah 'Abbas and the Arts of Isfahan, exh. cat., Asia Society Museum (New York, NY, 1973), p. 108, fig. 72 "The Life of Muhammad Zaman: a Reconsideration", Iran (1979), vol. 17, pp. 65-70, pp. 65-70 Marianna Shreve Simpson, Arab and Persian Painting in the Fogg Art Museum, Fogg Art Museum (Cambridge, MA, 1980), pp. 53, 104-105, 107, no. 40, ill. 40 Years On... Donations by John Goelet: Sculpture, Paintings and Drawings, Miniatures and Calligraphy, Tankas and Mandala, M. T. Train and Scala Books (New York, NY, 2000), p.176, fig. 241 Amy Landau, ed., Pearls on a String: Artists, Patrons, and Poets at the Great Islamic Courts, exh. cat., The Walters Art Museum (Baltimore, 2015), p. 168, fig. 6.1 Shuji Takashina, The Lectures of the 47th Annual Seminar on Arts, Kajima Foundation of Art (Tokyo, 2019), fig. 13 Negar Habibi, "The Making of New Art: From the Khazana to its Audience at the Court of Shah Soleyman", Safavid Persia in the Age of Empires: The Idea of Iran, ed. Charles Melville (London, 2021), vol. 10, p. 434, fig. 5, plate VIII Exhibition History The Enlightened Eye: Gifts from John Goelet, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 02/12/2000 - 05/07/2000 32Q: 2550 Islamic, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 09/04/2021 - 01/06/2022 Traces of the Poet, Artist, and Patron in the Age of Islamic Empires, The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore, 11/08/2015 - 01/31/2016; Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, San Francisco, 02/26/2016 - 05/08/2016 Verification Level This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu