Skip Navigation

The Friends of `Ali at the Hunt, Page from an Illustrated Manuscript of the Khwavarannama of Muhammad b. Husam

Arts of the Islamic World

These pages belong to a dispersed illustrated manuscript and the first known copy of the Khavarannama by the poet Muhammad ibn Husam (d. circa 1470). Modeled on the Iranian national epic, the Shahnama (Book of Kings), the Khavarannama details the life of cAli, the cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet and the most important figure in Shica Islam after Muhammad. The manuscript originally contained 155 miniatures, which appear to have been executed some years after the text and display the vibrant colors and lush vegetation characteristic of the Turkman painting tradition of Shiraz. In one of the paintings shown here, the military leader cAdnan visits cAli, depicted as a enthroned king; the other shows a horseman lassoing a wild donkey as his companions stab a spotted leopard and shoot a wild goat. The text on the hunting scene includes the name of Said ibn Abi Waqqas, a relative of the Prophet and purportedly the first to accept Islam; he may therefore be represented in the illustration.
MEDIUM Ink and opaque watercolor, and gold on paper
DATES ca. 1477
DYNASTY Timurid
PERIOD Turkman
DIMENSIONS 8 x 6 5/8 in. (20.3 x 16.8 cm)  (show scale)
SIGNATURE "Farhad"
ACCESSION NUMBER 86.227.132
CREDIT LINE Gift of the Ernest Erickson Foundation, Inc.
PROVENANCE Prior to 1963, provenance not yet documented; before 1963, acquired by Hassan Khan Monif of New York, NY; by 1963, acquired by Ernest Erickson; 1986, gift of the Ernest Erickson Foundation to the Brooklyn Museum.
Provenance FAQ
MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view
CAPTION The Friends of `Ali at the Hunt, Page from an Illustrated Manuscript of the Khwavarannama of Muhammad b. Husam, ca. 1477. Ink and opaque watercolor, and gold on paper, 8 x 6 5/8 in. (20.3 x 16.8 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of the Ernest Erickson Foundation, Inc., 86.227.132 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 86.227.132_acetate_bw.jpg)
IMAGE overall, 86.227.132_acetate_bw.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph
"CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.
RIGHTS STATEMENT No known copyright restrictions
This work may be in the public domain in the United States. Works created by United States and non-United States nationals published prior to 1923 are in the public domain, subject to the terms of any applicable treaty or agreement. You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this work. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). The Museum does not warrant that the use of this work will not infringe on the rights of third parties, such as artists or artists' heirs holding the rights to the work. It is your responsibility to determine and satisfy copyright or other use restrictions before copying, transmitting, or making other use of protected items beyond that allowed by "fair use," as such term is understood under the United States Copyright Act. The Brooklyn Museum makes no representations or warranties with respect to the application or terms of any international agreement governing copyright protection in the United States for works created by foreign nationals. For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
RECORD COMPLETENESS
Not every record you will find here is complete. More information is available for some works than for others, and some entries have been updated more recently. Records are frequently reviewed and revised, and we welcome any additional information you might have.