An illustrated and illuminated leaf from a manuscript of Firdausi's Shahnameh: Bahram Gur slays two lions to win the crown, attributed to Mirza Ghulam, India, Mughal, circa 1610

This folio originates from an early Mughal manuscript of the Shahnameh with illustrations by Mughal-trained artists and artists working in a Persian style such as Mirza Ghulam, Dawud, Dadar Kashmiri, Muhammad Pandat and Haidar Kashmiri. The artist of this miniature, Mirza Ghulam, was trained under the mentorship of Aqa Riza and together they worked in the service of Prince Salim in Allahabad from 1599-1604 before transferring to the imperial atelier in Agra under Jahangir from 1605-10. Although biographical data on the artist of this folio is scarce, surviving paintings by the artist suggest that he was trained in the Persian tradition like his mentor (Okada 1992, p.113).

The miniatures in the album display the converging influences of painterly traditions of Mughal India, Safavid Iran and Central Asia and another folio from this manuscript in the Keir collection has been attributed to Bukhara (Robinson et al. 1976, no.III.342., pl.78). In this painting, the plain rocky hillside that frames the centre of the composition recalls Bukharan sixteenth-century painting such as an illustration of Layla and Majnun in the Louvre (inv.no. MAO 713). The smooth, rounded faces of the figures display a Safavid characteristic while the architecture in the upper left is a Mughal-inspired feature.

Other leaves from the same manuscript were sold in these Rooms, 1 July 1969, lot 101; 13 July 1971, lots 138-140; 7 December 1971, lots 54-56; 16 October 1996, along with a further folio, also attributed to Mirza Ghulam, sold at Christie’s, London, 4 October 2012, lot 18. Further folios are held in the Cleveland Museum of Art (inv.no. 2013.314).