June 2007
Lyric Visions
After a long courtship during which time Shirin honored her promise to her mother not to yield to Khosrow’s advances or to be left alone with him, they are finally married. Outside the door of the bedchamber, identified as such by the sign over the door that reads “The Just Sultan,” sits Shirin’s handmaiden. The pitchers and bowl are depicted as ready for the ritual ablutions that will take place after the consummation, which is a pious Islamic rite, though Khosrow and Shirin lived in the late 6th – early 7th century, prior to the advent of Islam .
Shiraz, in southeastern Persia was a major center of manuscript production during the 15th century. Architectural scenes are rendered two-dimensionally, with little indication of spatial recession and with emphasis on repeating geometric patterns of tile work and vegetal ornament.

SASAPA December 2014
The consummation of the marriage of Khosrau and Shirin
Folio from the Book of Kings (Shahnama)
Iran, Shiraz; 1494–1495
Opaque watercolor and gold on paper
After a long courtship during which princess Shirin honored her promise to her mother not to yield to king Khosrau’s advances, they are finally married. Shirin’s handmaiden sits outside of the marital bedchamber, ready with pitchers and bowl for the ritual cleansing that will take place after the consummation. Shiraz, in southeastern Iran, was a major center of manuscript production during the 15th century. Architectural scenes are rendered two-dimensionally, with little indication of spatial recession and with an emphasis on repeating geometric patterns of tile work and vegetal ornament.
Gift of the Catherine and Ralph Benkaim Collection, 2006.216
Last Updated: 2/8/2016