Decorative Drawing

Unknown

first half 15th century · Ink, watercolor, and gold on paper · Islamic Art

Ornamental brush drawings with lush foliage bearing a variety of human figures, animals, masks, heads, and often, though not here, mythological beasts first appeared in the Jalayrid court in the late fourteenth century. The genre flourished in the Timurid period in Herat when this drawing appears to have been made, as indicated by the figure style. The tradition later made its way to the Ottoman court in Istanbul where it continued with exceptional vigor. While all of them rely on a strongly calligraphic basis for the design, those of the Timurid period were executed with particular finesse.

Artist

Unknown

Date

first half 15th century

Medium

Ink, watercolor, and gold on paper

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1941