Unknown
Execution Scene, Folio from a Shahnama (Book of Kings)circa 1450

On view:

Geffen Galleries

Persian manuscript painting, mounted archers on horseback shooting arrows at two inverted figures suspended from a wooden rack, warm amber ground with gold sky and stylized clouds

Artist or Maker: Unknown
Title: Execution Scene, Folio from a Shahnama (Book of Kings)
Place Made: Northern India (?)
Date Made: circa 1450
Medium: Opaque watercolor and gold on paper
Dimensions: Image: 7 1/16 x 7 in. (17.9388 x 17.78 cm); Sheet: 10 1/16 x 9 13/16 in. (25.5588 x 24.9238 cm)
Credit Line: Purchased with funds provided by Harry and Yvonne Lenart
Accession Number: M.85.189
Classification: Drawings
Collecting Area: South and Southeast Asian Art
Curatorial Notes: The Shahnama (Book of Kings), the Iranian national epic, was composed by Firdawsi and completed around 1010. It chronicles in verse the legendary and historical kings and heroes of the Persian Empire up to the Arab Muslim conquest in the seventh century. Illustrated manuscripts of the text, often made under courtly patronage, only survive from the early fourteenth century onward; many of these were broken up in modern times for the sake of their paintings. Manuscripts of the text were widely produced throughout the Persian-literate world, including South Asia.

Battles feature prominently in the Shahnama, as illustrated in this painting depicting two men suspended upside down and targeted by mounted archers. Although the painting has been separated from its text, comparison with a similar scene that preserves its text suggests this may depict an event from the story of Iskandar (Alexander the Great), in which he has ordered the execution of Janusiyar and Mahiyar, who betrayed King Darius, his Persian half-brother. LACMA’s painting exemplifies a Persian style associated with the city of Shiraz, characterized by bold colors, a linear composition, and simplified forms. It demonstrates the rich cultural exchange between fifteenth-century Iran and the sultanate states of India, particularly through the circulation of illustrated manuscripts and the movement of artists.

2024
Selected Bibliography: Pal, Pratapaditya. Indian Painting, vol.1. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1993.
Pal, Pratapaditya, Thomas W. Lentz, Sheila R. Canby, Edwin Binney, 3rd, Walter B. Denny, and Stephen Markel. "Arts from Islamic Cultures: Los Angeles County Museum of Art." Arts of Asia 17, no. 6 (November/December 1987): 73-130.

Unknown
Execution Scene, Folio from a Shahnama (Book of Kings)circa 1450

On view:

Geffen Galleries

Artist or Maker: Unknown
Title: Execution Scene, Folio from a Shahnama (Book of Kings)
Place Made: Northern India (?)
Date Made: circa 1450
Medium: Opaque watercolor and gold on paper
Dimensions: Image: 7 1/16 x 7 in. (17.9388 x 17.78 cm); Sheet: 10 1/16 x 9 13/16 in. (25.5588 x 24.9238 cm)
Credit Line: Purchased with funds provided by Harry and Yvonne Lenart
Accession Number: M.85.189
Classification: Drawings
Collecting Area: South and Southeast Asian Art
Curatorial Notes: The Shahnama (Book of Kings), the Iranian national epic, was composed by Firdawsi and completed around 1010. It chronicles in verse the legendary and historical kings and heroes of the Persian Empire up to the Arab Muslim conquest in the seventh century. Illustrated manuscripts of the text, often made under courtly patronage, only survive from the early fourteenth century onward; many of these were broken up in modern times for the sake of their paintings. Manuscripts of the text were widely produced throughout the Persian-literate world, including South Asia.

Battles feature prominently in the Shahnama, as illustrated in this painting depicting two men suspended upside down and targeted by mounted archers. Although the painting has been separated from its text, comparison with a similar scene that preserves its text suggests this may depict an event from the story of Iskandar (Alexander the Great), in which he has ordered the execution of Janusiyar and Mahiyar, who betrayed King Darius, his Persian half-brother. LACMA’s painting exemplifies a Persian style associated with the city of Shiraz, characterized by bold colors, a linear composition, and simplified forms. It demonstrates the rich cultural exchange between fifteenth-century Iran and the sultanate states of India, particularly through the circulation of illustrated manuscripts and the movement of artists.

2024
Selected Bibliography: Pal, Pratapaditya. Indian Painting, vol.1. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1993.
Pal, Pratapaditya, Thomas W. Lentz, Sheila R. Canby, Edwin Binney, 3rd, Walter B. Denny, and Stephen Markel. "Arts from Islamic Cultures: Los Angeles County Museum of Art." Arts of Asia 17, no. 6 (November/December 1987): 73-130.