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Manuscript/Mixed Material Standing woman and a ghazal of Hafiz

About this Item

Title

  • Standing woman and a ghazal of Hafiz

Created / Published

  • 17th century

Headings

  • -  Calligraphy, Arabic
  • -  Calligraphy, Persian
  • -  Manuscripts, Persian--Washington (D.C.)
  • -  Iran
  • -  Arabic script calligraphy
  • -  Illuminated Islamic manuscripts
  • -  Islamic calligraphy
  • -  Islamic manuscripts
  • -  Nasta'liq

Notes

  • -  Standing woman and a ghazal of Hafiz, paintings produced in Safavid Isfahan, Iran, during the 17th century.
  • -  Dimensions of Written Surface: 12.2 (w) x 19.2 (h) cm
  • -  For comparative paintings, see Sheila Canby, "The Life and Work of the Painter Riza" (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1981).
  • -  It appears that the poem is linked to the painting it contains, which depicts a beautiful young woman walking among plants and using her right index finger to point to her strikingly arched eyebrows. Between her two fingers she also holds a tuft of hair, either taken from her own head or perhaps given to her by her lover as a token of his affection. The motif of the large, arched eyebrow (abru) as a mark of feminine beauty is common in Persian art and literature.
  • -  The composition's style is typical of single-sheet paintings produced in Safavid Isfahan, the capital of Persia (Iran), during the 17th century. At this time, painters such as Riza 'Abbasi (d. 1635) and Mu'in Musavvir (d. ca. 1707) frequently depicted single figures or lovers in embrace. Backgrounds tend toward single tones (such as grisaille) or include various motifs lightly painted in gold as used in this particular composition. This painting originally was signed, as a small black smudge is visible on the right of the woman's hip. The artist's signature has been erased and is now illegible.
  • -  This painting includes an outer frame comprised of a lyric poem (ghazal) composed by the Persian poet Hafiz (d. 791/1388-9). The ghazal describes a lover's affection for his beloved until the day of his death. The lover compares the woman's eyebrows to a mihrab (the prayer niche in a mosque) and thus the direction of his own repeated desirous entreaties. He also states that he is willing to seek out magicians to find a love potion to spellbind her.
  • -  Script: nasta'liq
  • -  1-2002-154-6

Medium

  • 1 volume ; 22.4 (w) x 34 (h) cm

Repository

  • Library of Congress African and Middle Eastern Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • 2019714644

Online Format

  • pdf
  • image

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

The contents of the Library of Congress Selections of Arabic, Persian, and Ottoman Calligraphy are in the public domain or have no known copyright restrictions and are free to use and reuse.

Credit Line: Library of Congress, African and Middle East Division, Near East Section Persian Manuscript Collection

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Standing woman and a ghazal of Hafiz. 17th Century. Manuscript/Mixed Material. https://www.loc.gov/item/2019714644/.

APA citation style:

Standing woman and a ghazal of Hafiz. 17th Century. [Manuscript/Mixed Material] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2019714644/.

MLA citation style:

Standing woman and a ghazal of Hafiz. 17th Century. Manuscript/Mixed Material. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/2019714644/>.