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Identification and Creation

Object Number
2002.50.129
Title
Episodes from the wedding of Zal and Rudaba
Classification
Manuscripts
Work Type
manuscript folio
Date
1562
Places
Creation Place: Middle East, Iran, Shiraz
Period
Safavid period
Culture
Persian
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/146677

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Ink, opaque watercolor and gold on paper
Dimensions
37.2 x 23.6 cm (14 5/8 x 9 5/16 in.)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
[Christies, London, 17 October 1995, lot no. 79]. [Mansour Gallery, London, before1997], sold; Stanford and Norma Jean Calderwood, Belmont, MA (by 1997-2002), gift; to Harvard Art Museums, 2002.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, The Norma Jean Calderwood Collection of Islamic Art
Accession Year
2002
Object Number
2002.50.129
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
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Descriptions

Description
Recto. Text describes Zal's Arrival in Zabulistan.
Verso. Text describes the Wedding of Zal and Rudaba.

Published Catalogue Text: In Harmony: The Norma Jean Calderwood Collection of Islamic Art , written 2013
78 A–B

Double page: The Marriage of Zal and Rudaba
A. Verso: text, with title “The wedding feast of Zal and Rudaba”
Folio: 37.2 × 23.6 cm (14 5/8 × 9 5/16 in.)
2002.50.129
B. Recto: text and illustration
Folio: 37.2 × 23.9 cm (14 5/8 × 9 7/16 in.)
2002.50.28

This festive painting depicts the marriage of the Iranian prince Zal to Rudaba, daughter of Mihrab, the king of Kabul. The vibrantly colored and dynamically composed scene is filled with lively vignettes, including a circle of female musicians and dancers who wave their long sleeves as they circle in front of the newly wedded couple. The palace interior is brightly tiled in various geometric patterns. In the lower left corner, Mihrab, in the company of Zal’s father, Sam, is about to join the celebratory party. The numerous torches and candles held by attendants and servants indicate that the event takes place at night.

Mika M. Natif

Publication History

  • Mary McWilliams, ed., In Harmony: The Norma Jean Calderwood Collection of Islamic Art, exh. cat., Harvard Art Museums (Cambridge, MA, 2013)

Exhibition History

Related Works

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