"Siege of Baghdad", Folio from a Dispersed copy of the Zafarnama (Book of Victory) of Sharaf al-din 'Ali Yazdi
Sharaf al-din 'Ali Yazdi|Ya'qub ibn Hasan, known as Siraj al-Husaini|Unknown
Dhu'l Hijja 839 A.H./June–July 1436 CE · Ink, opaque watercolor, silver, and gold on paper · Islamic Art
This folio once illustrated a manuscript of the Zafarnama, a biography of the ruler Timur commissioned by his grandson Ibrahim Sultan. The text glorifies Timur’s many victories on the battlefield, including his 1401 siege of Baghdad, depicted here. In the painting residents of the city attempt to flee by swimming across the Tigris. The distinctively spare yet highly animated angular compositions are characteristic of manuscript painting produced in Shiraz in this period.
- Artist
- Sharaf al-din 'Ali Yazdi|Ya'qub ibn Hasan, known as Siraj al-Husaini|Unknown
- Date
- Dhu'l Hijja 839 A.H./June–July 1436 CE
- Medium
- Ink, opaque watercolor, silver, and gold on paper
- Department
- Islamic Art
- Credit line
- Louis V. Bell Fund, 1967
