Battle Scene

Unknown

13th century · Opaque watercolor on paper · Islamic Art

This scene depicts a battle in which the central figure appears to be the only one who has not lost a limb. Severed heads, arms, and legs and a man who has lost his hand are arranged across the composition. The legs and tail of a downed horse are visible at the lower left. The sketchy drawing and thin wash used for the figures suggest that the image was produced in thirteenth-century Egypt. The curved swords are associated with "Saracens", as found in a thirteenth-century European illustration of a Crusader battle.

Artist

Unknown

Date

13th century

Medium

Opaque watercolor on paper

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

Purchase, Mr. and Mrs. Jerome A. Straka Gift, Fletcher Fund and Margaret Mushekian Gift, 1975