AN ILLUSTRATED AND ILLUMINATED LEAF FROM THE 'FREER SHAHNAMEH': BAHMAN DROPS A BOULDER TO KILL RUSTAM, BAGHDAD OR PERSIA, ILKHANID, CIRCA 1300-40 |

ink and gouache heightened with gold on paper, 31 lines to the page, written in naskh in black ink, the reverse with a heading written in gold outlined in black, margins and intercolumnar rules in red

In good condition, the margin on the right hand side has been consolidated and restored, minor smudges and stains, as viewed.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

This miniature originates from a dispersed copy of Firdausi's Shahnameh generally known as the 'Freer Shahnameh', which in turn belongs to a group known as the 'small Shahnamehs'. Over the years these manuscripts have been attributed to Western India, Shiraz and Tabriz around 1340, but detailed study in the late 1970s pointed to an origin in Baghdad at the turn of the fourteenth century (Simpson 1979).  For a recent reference to this group of Shahnamehs, see the exhibition catalogue Komoroff and Carboni 2002, pp.150-155. These important manuscripts are proof of a commitment by the Ilkhanid rulers to Firdausi’s epic and a development of its form from a more oral tradition to a structured illustrated manuscript intended for reading to a less literate crowd (Simpson 1978, p.320-3). In this scene Bahman is hiding on the mountain and ready to throw a boulder to Rustam, who is resting with a cup in one hand and roasting a bird in the other, while his horse Rakhsh is grazing in the meadow. Bahman drops the boulder but Rustam easily kicks it away.

The majority of the manuscript was with Hagop Kevorkian at the beginning of the twentieth century. He sold most of them to Freer Gallery in 1928, 1930 and 1940. Other leaves were sold in these rooms during the 1970s and 1980s (1 December 1969, lots 31-35; 7 December 1970, lots 19-20; 7 July 1975, lot 24; 3 April 1978 lots 19-20, 23 April 1979 lots 34-37; 21 April 1980 lots 32 and 33) and many are now in private collections including the Art and History Trust Collection and the Nasser D. Khalili Collection.