Collections: Asian Art: King Solomon and His Court

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King Solomon and His Court

• Culture: Indian
• Medium: Opaque watercolor and gold on paper
• Place Made: Hyderabad, Deccan, India
• Dates: 1875-1900
• Dimensions: sheet: 19 11/16 x 11 7/8 in. (50.0 x 30.2 cm) image: 11 3/8 x 8 3/4 in. (28.9 x 22.2 cm)
• Inscriptions: Inscriptions: "Hazrat hanat Sulaiman 'Ali nababan (?) alaihim al-salwat wa al-salam" in Persian in black ink on mount above picture
• Collections: Asian Art
• Museum Location: This item is not on view
• Accession Number: 59.205.16
• Credit Line: Gift of James S. Hays
• Image: Overall, 59.205.16_IMLS_SL2.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph
Indian. King Solomon and His Court, 1875-1900. Opaque watercolor and gold on paper, sheet: 19 11/16 x 11 7/8 in. (50.0 x 30.2 cm) image: 11 3/8 x 8 3/4 in. (28.9 x 22.2 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of James S. Hays, 59.205.16 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 59.205.16_IMLS_SL2.jpg)
• Catalogue Description: Solomon is seated on a gold bejeweled throne smelling a flower in the midst of all manner of beasts and beings, both real and fantastic. Nearest to the throne rows of angels face Solomon and peacocks fan their tails. In the foreground a turbaned figure, perhaps a saintly donor, is seated in front of his crudely painted servant. Despite the alternately garish and muddy palette, the array of animals enlivens this painting. Depictions of the Court of Solomon enjoyed great popularity in seventeenth-century Ottoman painting. The vogue appears to have spread from Turkey to the Deccan. Inscription: On mount above picture, in Persian, in black ink, in nastaliq script: "Hazrat hanat Sulaiman 'Ali nababan [?] alaihim al-salwat wa al-salam."