"Kai Khusrau Crosses the Sea", Folio from a Shahnama (Book of Kings) of Firdausi
ca. 1610
Medium
Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper
Dimensions
Page: H. 8 in. (20.3 cm) W. 4 7/8 in. (12.4 cm) Painting: H. 5 3/8 in. (13.6 cm) W. 2 3/4 in. (7 cm)
Classification
Codices
Department
Islamic Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Wendy Findlay, 1982
Accession Number
1982.476.3
Tags
Art Historical Context
Behold the vibrant folio *"Kai Khusrau Crosses the Sea"* from a *Shahnama* (Book of Kings) by the legendary Persian poet Abu'l Qasim Firdausi. Created around 1610 during the Safavid era in Iran, this miniature captures a dramatic episode from the epic tale, where the heroic king Kai Khusrau navigates perilous waters. Men aboard ships brave the waves, with fish teeming below, evoking the mythical perils of the journey in Firdausi's 10th-century masterpiece—a chronicle of Iran's ancient kings and legends that shaped Persian identity. Rendered in ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper, the ar...
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...