"Birth of Rustam", Folio from a Shahnama (Book of Kings)
1560–80
Medium
Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper
Dimensions
H. 11 1/4 in. (28.6 cm) W. 7 1/4 in. (18.4 cm)
Classification
Codices
Department
Islamic Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Rogers Fund and Joseph V. McMullan Gift, 1965
Accession Number
65.7.1
Tags
Art Historical Context
Welcome to the Islamic Art galleries at the Metropolitan Museum of Art where this exquisite folio from a *Shahnama* (Book of Kings) transports visitors to the world of Persian epic poetry. Titled "Birth of Rust," this 16th-century illumination (ca. 1560–80) captures a pivotal moment from Abu'l Qasim Firda's monumental 10th-century masterpiece. Rustam, the legendary hero of ancient Iran, is born to Rudabeh in a dramatic scene filled with attendants—men and women surrounding the infant, symbolizing joy, wonder, and the dawn of a mythic champion whose exploits shaped Persian identity for centurie...
About the Artist
Abu'l Qasim Firdausi · 935–1020
Abu'l Qasim Firdausi, born around 940 in the village of Paj near Tus in Khorasan (modern-day Iran), emerged from a family of landed gentry known as dehqans, who preserved ancient Iranian oral traditions amid the cultural renaissance of the Samanid Empire. Little is documented about his early life or formal training, though he likely received a basic education including Arabic literacy, immersing h...