Image

Unknown Maker, Persian

Laila and Majnun at School

Description

Maker

Culture

Persian

Title

Laila and Majnun at School

Period

Safavid

Year

ca. 1570

Medium

Opaque watercolor and gold on paper

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

Opaque watercolor and gold on paper

Materials

ink, watercolor, gold

Supports

paper

Geography

Place Made: Shiraz; Origin: Iran

Dimensions

Sheet: 35.9 x 23.2 cm (14 1/8 x 9 1/8 inches)

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Edgar J. Lownes Fund

Object Number

45.069

Type

Paintings

Exhibition History

Shahzia Sikander

Extraordinary Realities

Nov 12, 2021 – Jan 30, 2022

Label copy

This painting, from a copy of the manuscript Khamsa (Quintet) by the poet Nizami (1141-1209), illustrates the site where Laila and Majnun, protagonists of the story, fall in love. They are in school, surrounded by typical activities: students are preparing paper for use, exercising, reading, and writing. The architecture and patterning in Safavid-period works such as this one were among the inspirations for Sikander’s thesis painting, The Scroll.

Glimpses of Grandeur

Courtly Arts of the Later Islamic Empires

Sep 24, 1999 – Dec 26, 1999

Use & Feedback

Image use

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This object is in the Public Domain and available under a CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication

Tombstone

Unknown Maker, Persian

Laila and Majnun at School, ca. 1570

Opaque watercolor and gold on paper

Sheet: 35.9 x 23.2 cm (14 1/8 x 9 1/8 inches)

Edgar J. Lownes Fund 45.069

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