An Episode from the Story of the Sasanian King Khusrau and his Beloved Shirin, from a Khamsa (Quintet) of Nizami (1141–1209) (verso); Persian verses from a Haft Awrang (Seven Thrones) of Jami (d. 1492) (recto) 1540-70 Part of a set. See all set records Iran, probably Shiraz, Safavid period (1501-1722) Opaque watercolor, gold, silver, and ink on paper; double-sided Sheet: 29.6 x 16.2 cm (11 5/8 x 6 3/8 in.); Image: 21 x 13 cm (8 1/4 x 5 1/8 in.) Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1947.500 DESCRIPTION The Khamsa is a collection of five narrative poems, one of which is dedicated to the romance of Khusrau Parviz (590–628), a pre-Islamic king of Iran, and Shirin, his beloved Armenian princess. Khusrau’s turban has the anachronistic baton worn by Safavid royalty and the egret feather, an emblem of nobility instituted by the Mongols in the 1200s. Here the lovers are seated before a tent in an idyllic landscape at night, indicated by the dark blue sky dotted with stars, painted with now tarnished silver. Shirin serves figs and pomegranates, symbolic of fertility, to Khusrau as attendants bring more figs and wine. Next to Shirin’s black horse, the musician at bottom right plays an oud, a stringed instrument similar to a lute. PROVENANCE ?-1947 Purchased from Heeramaneck Galleries by J.H. Wade Fund 1947- The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH CITATIONS The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958. Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 724 archive.org The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 223 archive.org The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 223 archive.org The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 280 archive.org EXHIBITION HISTORY Imperial Images in Persian Painting. Scottish Arts Council Gallery, Edinburgh, Scotland (August 13-September 11, 1977). Islamic art rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 3, 2012-December 9, 2013). Muhammad Shah's Royal Persian Tent. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (July 13, 2015-August 23, 2016). Arts of Iran (Islamic art rotation). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 30, 2018-October 28, 2019).