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Persian Couplets (recto), Calligraphy, Persian Verses; Single Page Manuscript

late 1500s–early 1600s · ink, gold, and opaque watercolor on paper

From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.

About this work

Under Shah Abbas, the tradition in which painting was employed to illustrate a literary work was all but abandoned. In its place came a new concern with single-page illustrations, such as this one, which have no specific content or meaning. They often illustrate albums of collections of verses about love and beauty, in which these themes often appear to serve as allegories of things divine.

Cleveland Museum of Art’s own description

Credit linePersian Couplets (recto), Calligraphy, Persian Verses; Single Page Manuscript, late 1500s–early 1600s. Iran, Isfahan, Safavid period (1501-1722). Ink, gold, and opaque watercolor on paper; overall: 31.6 x 20.4 cm (12 7/16 x 8 1/16 in.); text area: 21 x 12.4 cm (8 1/4 x 4 7/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund, 1944.494.a

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