{
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"tombstone": "Portrait of Nushirwan the Just (verso) from a Shahnama (Book of Kings) of Firdausi (940\u20131019 or 1025), 1330\u201335. Iran, Tabriz, Ilkhanid period (1256-1353). Opaque watercolor, ink, and gold on paper; sheet: 59.3 x 40.2 cm (23 3/8 x 15 13/16 in.); image: 24 x 22 cm (9 7/16 x 8 11/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, John L. Severance Fund, 1959.330.b",
"current_location": null,
"title": "Portrait of Nushirwan the Just (verso) from a Shahnama (Book of Kings) of Firdausi (940\u20131019 or 1025)",
"creation_date": "1330\u201335",
"creation_date_earliest": 1330,
"creation_date_latest": 1335,
"artists_tags": [],
"culture": [
"Iran, Tabriz, Ilkhanid period (1256-1353)"
],
"technique": "opaque watercolor, ink, and gold on paper",
"support_materials": [],
"department": "Islamic Art",
"collection": "Islamic Art",
"type": "Manuscript",
"measurements": "Sheet: 59.3 x 40.2 cm (23 3/8 x 15 13/16 in.); Image: 24 x 22 cm (9 7/16 x 8 11/16 in.)",
"dimensions": {
"sheet": {
"height": 0.593,
"height_inch": 23,
"height_inch_fraction": 0.375,
"width": 0.402,
"width_inch": 15,
"width_inch_fraction": 0.8125
},
"image": {
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"height_inch": 9,
"height_inch_fraction": 0.4375,
"width": 0.22,
"width_inch": 8,
"width_inch_fraction": 0.6875
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},
"state_of_the_work": null,
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"copyright": null,
"inscriptions": [
{
"inscription": "Script: Naskh",
"inscription_translation": null,
"inscription_remark": null,
"sortorder": null
},
{
"inscription": null,
"inscription_translation": "Title heading in Kufic, in gold on blue background: \"The image of Nushirvan, the Just\"",
"inscription_remark": "This painting is in the section about Nushirvan with Buzurjmihr and the priests. The relevant couplet could be lines 10\u201311: \"The king of kings sat with priest who have seen the world and are experienced, the head priest and experts like Shapur and Yazdgird, the secretary.\"",
"sortorder": 2
},
{
"inscription": null,
"inscription_translation": "On the top part of the throne: \"sovereignty [is God's].\"",
"inscription_remark": null,
"sortorder": 3
}
],
"exhibitions": {
"current": [
{
"id": 517994,
"title": "The Classical Style in Islamic Painting",
"description": "The Classical Style in Islamic Painting. The Morgan Library & Museum, New York, NY (organizer) (November 1, 1968-January 4, 1969).",
"opening_date": "1968-11-01T05:00:00"
},
{
"id": 443710,
"title": "Persian Miniature Manuscripts",
"description": "Persian Miniature Manuscripts. The Scottish Arts Council Gallery, Edinburgh, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (organizer) (August 13-September 11, 1977).",
"opening_date": "1977-08-13T04:00:00"
},
{
"id": 380961,
"title": "Islamic art rotation",
"description": "Islamic art rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 16, 2013-December 15, 2014).",
"opening_date": "2013-12-16T05:00:00"
},
{
"id": 380565,
"title": "An Epic of Kings: The Great Mongol Shahnama",
"description": "An Epic of Kings: The Great Mongol Shahnama. National Museum of Asian Art, Washington, DC (organizer) (September 21, 2024-January 12, 2025) https://asia.si.edu/whats-on/exhibitions/mongol-shahnama/.",
"opening_date": "2024-09-21T04:00:00"
}
],
"legacy": []
},
"provenance": [
{
"description": "(Georges Demotte [1877-1923], New York, NY)",
"citations": [],
"footnotes": [],
"date": "c. 1910-?",
"sortorder": 1
},
{
"description": "Homberg",
"citations": [],
"footnotes": null,
"date": null,
"sortorder": 2
},
{
"description": "(Mrs. Paul [Marguerite] Mallon [d. 1977], Paris and New York, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)",
"citations": [],
"footnotes": [],
"date": "?-1959",
"sortorder": 3
},
{
"description": "The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH",
"citations": [],
"footnotes": [],
"date": "1959-",
"sortorder": 4
}
],
"find_spot": null,
"related_works": [],
"former_accession_numbers": [],
"did_you_know": "The symmetrical composition conveys the stability, balance, and restraint during the reign of King Nushirwan the Just.",
"description": "Mongol interest in the production of illustrated manuscripts eventually focused on Persian epic poetry. The Shahnama, a compilation of the epics and tales of Iran's legendary heroes, was a natural choice; the book included many subjects that suited Mongol taste, such as banquets, battles, hunting, and magical or fantastic events.
Seated on the throne in the center of the painting is the Sasanian ruler of Iran, Khusraw I Anushirwan (531\u2013579), descendant of Bahram Gur. Above the king's head an inscription reads, \"Picture of Nushirwan the Just.\" The figure in the elaborate turban to the left of the king is probably the young Minister Buzurgmihr, famous for his wisdom and virtue. To celebrate the explanation of a troublesome dream by Buzurgmihr, Nushirwan held a series of seven banquets. The text around this painting describes the fifth banquet.",
"external_resources": {
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"citations": [
{
"citation": "The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966.",
"page_number": "Reproduced: p. 221",
"url": "https://archive.org/details/CMAHandbook1966/page/n245"
},
{
"citation": "The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969.",
"page_number": "Reproduced: p. 221",
"url": "https://archive.org/details/CMAHandbook1969/page/n245"
},
{
"citation": "The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978.",
"page_number": "Reproduced: p. 278",
"url": "https://archive.org/details/CMAHandbook1978/page/n298"
},
{
"citation": "Hillenbrand, Robert. The Great Mongol Shahnama. London, Washington, DC, New Haven, CT: Hali Publications Ltd.; Freer Gallery of Art: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, the Smithsonian\u2019s National Museum of Asian Art; Published in association with Yale University Press, 2022.",
"page_number": "Mentioned and Reproduced: painting 54",
"url": ""
}
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"creditline": "John L. Severance Fund",
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"date_text": "1330\u201335",
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"alternate_titles": [
"Portrait of Nushirwan the Just (Verso); Illustration and Text (Persian Verses): The Fortieth Year of King Kisra Nushirwan's Reign. The Story of Buzurgmihr. \"The Portrait of Nushirwan the Just.\" in the manuscript of The Shahnama of Firdawsi",
"Illustration from a Manuscript of the Shahnamah of Firdawsi: Nushirwan's Fifth Banquet for Buzurdjmir"
],
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"updated_at": "2026-05-01 06:49:39.260000"
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