LAYLA WA MAJNUN, SAFAVID, PERSIA, 17TH CENTURY

A folio from the Khamsa of Nizami, opaque pigments heightened with gold on paper, depicting a chemist trying to cure Majnun from his love with Laya, two lines of Persian inscriptions in black nastali'q script above and below.
12 by 18 cm.

Catalogue note: The scene depicted in this painting is from Layla and Majnun, the 7th century Arab tale of doomed love on which the well-known 12th century medieval Persian narrative poem by Nizami Ganjavi was based. It later became a frequently illustrated text in Persia and India. Majnun, driven to madness by his love for Layla, is often depicted as an emaciated ascetic, overcome with love for his beloved.