"Rustam Avenges His Own Impending Death", Folio 472r from the Shahnama (Book of Kings) of Shah Tahmasp
Bashdan Qara|Abu'l Qasim Firdausi
ca. 1525–30 · Opaque watercolor, ink, silver, and gold on paper · Islamic Art
Rustam’s wicked half‑brother Shaghad conceived a plan to kill him by preparing a hunting ground with pits filled with upright spears. When Rustam went hunting near these traps, he fell into a pit and was impaled. Realizing that Shaghad, watching from behind a tree, had devised the plot, Rustam sent an arrow through the tree and killed Shaghad, shortly before he himself died. Although the figures are devoid of emotion, the barren setting accentuates the starkness and finality of the scene.
- Artist
- Bashdan Qara|Abu'l Qasim Firdausi
- Date
- ca. 1525–30
- Medium
- Opaque watercolor, ink, silver, and gold on paper
- Department
- Islamic Art
- Credit line
- Gift of Arthur A. Houghton Jr., 1970
