Dimand, Maurice Sven. -New Accessions of Islamic Art

7/30/2019 Dimand, Maurice Sven. -New Accessions of Islamic Art

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N E W ACCESSIONS O F ISLAMIC A R TBYMAURICE S. DIMAND

Curator f Near EasternArtDuring the past year the Museum's collection ofIslamic art has been greatly enriched by severalimportant purchases, gifts, and bequests.The be-quest of twenty ceramics and two PersianrugsbyHorace Havemeyer has already been discussedin a separate Bulletin article (May I957). One ofthe most notable additions was the Cora TimkenBurnett Bequest of Persianminiatures and otherart objects, which included many importantArabic and Persian paintings of the thirteenthto the seventeenth century.The earliest miniature painting in the BurnettBequest comes from the famous manuscript ofMateriaMedica, an Arab version of the Greekwork by Dioscorides, copied and probablypainted by Abdallah ibn al-Fadl in the month ofRajab 620 A. H. (July-August 1224). The minia-tures from this manuscript, now in various col-lections in Europe and America, are of theBaghdad school. They illustrate the preparationof medicine, medical consultations, and opera-tions. The Burnett miniature represents a thir-teenth-century Baghdad pharmacy, with itsstorage jars and druggists preparing medicinefrom honey. The style of painting, based onSyrian and Iranian traditions, shows a keenobservation of daily life. The story is told in asimple way and the composition is limited toessentials. The figures and building are treatedin a purely decorative manner, which is furtherenhanced by the use of a few vigorous colors,such as red, blue, green, yellow, and purple,with the addition of gold.Six miniatures in the Burnett Bequest belongto the Mongol school of Persian painting. Theearliest of these, showing a pair of bullocks,comes from a copy of Manafi al-Hayawan, or"Description of Animals," by Abu Said ibnBaktishu. The characteristic feature is the Chi-nese influence introduced into Iran by theMongol conquerors.The best-known and earliest

copy of Manafi al-Hayawan is in the MorganLibrary. It was copied in Maragha at the order

of the Ilkhan ruler Ghazan Khan in I297 orI299. Many of the miniatures in both manu-scripts are painted in an impressionisticmannerwith little color, suggesting the monochromeChinese ink paintings of the Sung and Yuandynasties. The naturalistic landscape, with lotusplants and Chinese clouds, and the subduedcolors are typical of the Mongol style.Another important Mongol example is a leafwith miniature paintings on each side, belongingto a manuscript of Munisal-Ahrar,an anthologyof Persianpoetry by Muhammad ibn al-Jajarmi,who was also the scribe. It is dated Ramadan741 A. H. (February I34I). This leaf, one of sixfrom the above manuscript, is decorated on bothsides with three bands on a red ground contain-ing representationsof constellations and signs ofthe zodiac. The small miniatures show the char-acteristic style of the Mongol school, which isalso known to us from the fine illustrations of aShah-nama "Book of Kings") in the MonroeGutman collection in New York, fourteen ofwhich are presently on loan at the Museum.

Contemporary with the Mongol school ofpainting in Iran was the Mamluk school, towhich belongs a miniature representing a me-chanical device, or automaton, placed on top ofan elephant. It comes froma well-knownmanu-script of al-Jazari's treatise on Automata, opiedin the month of Ramadan 715 A. H. (October1315). Five other paintings from the same manu-script, acquired in I955 from the Kevorkiancollection, arenow in our Museum. The Mamlukrulersof Egypt and Syria were particularlyfondof al-Jazari'swork. In the libraryof Santa Sophiain Istanbul there is a manuscriptof the Automatacopied in Cairo in 1354 for an amir of the Mam-luk sultan Salah ad-Din Salih. The miniaturesof these Mamluk manuscripts are painted inbright colorsand a bold style based on traditionsof the Mesopotamian school of painting.Ten of the miniature paintings in the Bur-nett Bequest belong to the Timurid school of the

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fifteenth century. The artists working for theTimurids were responsible for the developmentof a true national style of Persian painting. ShahRukh (1404-1447) and his son BaisunkurMirzawere great patrons of the arts of the book. Oneof the earliest Timurid paintings in the Burnettcollection representsa pair of lovers in a garden,probably Humay and Humayun. It is unusuallylarge, measuring I9 Y by 129/6inches, and comesfrom the same manuscript of Rashid ad-Din'sJami at-Tawarikh, r "Universal History," as theJonah and the Whale in the Metropolitan Mu-seum. This work of the famous Mongol historianand vizier of emperors Ghazan and Uljaitu re-mained popular under the Timurids.Several Timurid miniatures in the BurnettBe-quest came from another copy of the Jami at-Tawarikhwhich can also be dated in the periodof Shah Rukh. Here, as in the miniature repre-senting the pilgrimage of Adam, the Timuridstyle is fully developed. Of particular interest isthe treatment of the landscape with spongymountains that appears in so many Timuridpaintings of the fifteenth century.Another Timurid miniature in this collectionis a rare painting on silk. Only very few Persiansilk paintings are in existence. One is in theBoston Museum and another one was formerlyin the collection of Countessde Behaguein Paris.The Burnett painting represents a garden scenewith two lovers. The subject is characteristic ofthe romantic spirit prevailing in the Herat schoolof Shah Rukh and Baisunkur. The idea of paint-ing on silk was derived from China. Persianartists were familiar with Chinese paintings asthere were many of them in the Herat library.From John M. Schiff the Museum acquired,partly as a gift from The Schiff Foundation andpartly as a purchase from the Rogers Fund, theMortimer L. Schiff collection of Persian potterywith painted polychrome overglaze decoration,which includes six outstanding examples thatwill be on exhibition shortly. This well-knowngroup of thirteenth-century pottery has beenshown in many exhibitions of Persian art hereand abroad. It contains several masterpieces ofthe so-called Minai ware, made in the kilns ofKashan. One of the famous potters of Kashan,Abu'l Kasim Abd Allah, wrote in 130I a treatise

on Persian faience technique. He mentions twotypes of overglaze technique: one uses decora-tion in gold leaf and white, red, black, andyellow paint; the other, using seven colors, isthe true "Minai" technique, closely related tominiature painting. Pottery of this type was firedtwice, first after glazing and a second time afterbeing painted, when it was placed in earthen-ware containers and fired for half a day. Thedecoration of this fine Saljuk pottery consistsmostly of figure subjects, such as horsemen,seated and standing figures of courtiers andprinces,hunting scenes, and sphinxes.Three of the outstanding bowls in the Schiffcollection are decoratedwith the storyof BahramGur and his lute-player Azadah. This populartheme of Persianart is narratedin the epic poemthe Shah-nama y Firdausi. In two of our bowlstwo consecutive episodes of the story are repre-sented simultaneously. Bahram Gur is showntransfixingwith a single arrowthe hind hoof andear of a deer, and the same scene includes thedeath of Azadah, who, after making a mockeryof Bahram Gur's skill, was thrown from thesaddle and trampled to death. These three bowlsin the Schiff collection are masterpieces ofthirteenth-century Persian miniaturists and arerelated to contemporary paintings in manu-scripts of the Baghdad school.

Through the generosity of Mr. and Mrs. A.Wallace Chauncey the Museum received as agift fifteen Persian and Mesopotamian ceramicsand two Syrian enameled glass beakers, fromthe Henry G. Leberthon collection. There arethree outstanding examples of twelfth-centurylusterwarefrom Rakka with elaborate arabesquedesigns and decorative writing. Another im-portant piece is a thirteenth-century albarellowith painted decoration in white and gold on acobalt blue background. The albarello shape,which originated in the East, was adopted laterby Italian potters. Several examples of laterPersian ware of the sixteenth and seventeenthcenturies belong to the so-called Kubatchagroup, with decoration consisting of plants andfigures in monochrome or polychrome. Thisware, although found in Kubatcha in the Cau-casus, should be regarded as Persian and wasprobably made in the region of Tabriz.

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LEFT: Preparationof medicinefromhoney n apharmacy, rom a manuscriptof Materia Medica. Mesopotamian (Bagcal device on top of an elephant,from a manuscriptof Automata. Egypto-Arabic (Mamluk school), 13I5. Both

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LEFT: A pair of bullocks,rom Manaftal-Hayawan,or Description f Animals.Persian(Mongolschool),aboumoonandsignsof thezodiac,rom Munisal-Ahrar,an anthologyf poetry.Persian(Mongolschool),I34I. Both


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PrinceHumayandtheChinese rincessHumayun,rom a manuscriptf Jami at-Tawarikh,orUniversalHistory. Persian (Timurid school), about 1410. Bequestof Cora TimkenBurnett, i956231


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Gardencenewith loversand servants.Paintingon silk. Persian(Timuridschool),earlyxv century.Bequ

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Bowl with thestoryof BahramGurandhis lute-player zadah.Persian Kashan),about1200. Ultra-violetandx-rayphotographsf thebowlareshown npage239.RogersFundandGiftofTheSchiffFoundation,957

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Bowls with scenesfrom the storyof Bahram Gur and Azadah. Persian (Kashan), early xiii century.Rogers Fund a


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LEFT: Jug with lustered decoration,Mesopotamian (Rakka), xii or xiii century.Height, 718 inches. CENTER: Albin white and gold on a blue ground. Persian (probably Kashan), first half of the xiii century.Height, z4%

inchin colors. Persian (so-called Kubatcha), end of the xvi century. Diameter, I3Y4 inches. All Gift of Mr. and

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Dimand, Maurice Sven. -New Accessions of Islamic Art