Khamsa (Quintet) of Nizami of Ganja

Nizami

15th century · Ink, opaque watercolor, silver, and gold on paper · Islamic Art

By the end of the fifteenth century, manuscripts of Persian poetry typically were written in a script known as nasta'liq, an elegant, flowing form of calligraphy. This manuscript is somewhat unusual in its archaizing use of the more rectilinear naskh script. Nevertheless, the paintings of this manuscript are stylistically akin to those found in manuscripts produced in Shiraz during the reign of Sultan Khalil Aq Quyunlu (d. 1478), suggesting that it was copied under an earlier patron, but illustrated in the Aq Quyunlu period.

Artist

Nizami

Date

15th century

Medium

Ink, opaque watercolor, silver, and gold on paper

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

Gift of Alexander Smith Cochran, 1913