Bookbinding with Animals in a Landscape

Unknown

mid-16th century · Leather and papier-maché; painted, gilded, and lacquered · Islamic Art

This bookbinding is a rare example surviving from the Akbar period. Although the contents of the manuscript it covered are now dispersed, it once contained the Persian poet Jami’s retelling of the tale of Yusuf and Zulayka from the Qur’an. Depictions of predators chasing and attacking prey were painted and gilded onto a papier-mâché surface that was then lacquered to produce a durable finish. Green and gold cartouches decorate the leather doublures of the interior.

Artist

Unknown

Date

mid-16th century

Medium

Leather and papier-maché; painted, gilded, and lacquered

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1949