The Court of Gayumars, folio from Shah Tahmasp's Shahnama
Sultan Muhammad. c. 1522-1525 C.E. Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper
His painting combines an ingenious composition with a broad palette dominated by cool colors, each element minutely and
precisely rendered in a technique that defies comprehension. Though the painting is large and even spills out into the gold-flecked margins, Sultan Muhammad populates the scene with countless figures, animals, and details of landscape, but in such a way that does not compromise legibility. The level of detail is so intense that the viewer is scarcely able to absorb everything, no matter how closely he looks
Form- Shows harmony between man & landscape
- Minute details do not overwhelm harmony of scenery
Function - Depicting a secular/mythological scene, rather than religious scene
- Figures and animals ok because it is not religious
Content - Excerpt shows first king, Gayumars, enthroned before his community
- On the left is his son Siyamaki
- On the right is his grandson Hishang
- His court appears in a semi-circle below him
- His court are all in court attire, for example wearing leopard skins
Context - The angel, Surush, tells Gayumars that his son will be murdered by the Black Div
- The Black Div is the son of the demon Ahriman
- A page from the Shahnama, translating to the "Book of Kings"
- Shahnama is a Persian epic poem by Firdawsi
- Shahnama tells the history of Persia
- The whole book contains 258 illustrated pages
Cross-Cultural Connections: King and Court - Jahangir Preferring a Sufi Shaikh to Kings, by Bichtir
- Presentation of Fijian mats and tapa cloths
- Las Meninas, Velázquez
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