English: THE ENVOY QANBAR AQA BEFORE SULTAN MURAD TURKMAN

MU'IN MUSAVVIR, ISFAHAN, CIRCA 1670

Gouache heightened with gold on paper depicting a diplomatic encounter in an architectural setting between the centrally placed Sultan Murad Turkman receiving the tutor Qanbar Aqa who had been sent by Shah Isma'il, each with identification inscriptions on their robes, looked upon by other members of the court, between two lines of black Persian nasta'liq and within red and gold margins ruled in blue, margin buff paper with a red inscription to the right, verso with 15 ll. of flowing nasta'liq within similar borders, unframed Miniature 7 1/8 x 5 1/8in. (18.1 x 13cm.); Folio 12½ x 8¾in. (31.8 x 22.2cm.)

A Shahnama also illustrated by Mu'in contains a number of miniatures which follow in a similar style, with the same bold colouring and attention to detail. One of these is published in Sheila R. Canby, Persian Painting, The British Museum 1993, pl. 73, p. 109, and another, in the Arthur M. Sackler Museum, is published in Massumeh Farhad, 'The art of Mu'in Musavvir: A Mirror of his Times' in Sheila Canby (ed.) Persian Masters: Five Centuries of Painting, Marg 1990, pl.1, p. 115.