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Lot Essay
The Dastan-i Masih or ‘the Story of Christ’ is also known as the Mir’at al-Quds or ‘Mirror of Holiness’ was composed by the Jesuit missionary Father Jerome Xavier at the request of the Mughal Emperor Akbar (r. 1556-1605). Akbar is well-known for his interest in other faiths. Father Jerome led the third Jesuit mission to the court of Akbar following a specific request from the Emperor. Father Jerome arrived at Lahore in May 1595 having spent the previous year mastering Persian. He used his linguistic abilities to compose a ‘Story of Christ’,recounting the life of Jesus and the deeds ascribed to him by popular legend of the time. The text was formally presented to Akbar in 1602. Father Jerome remarked that copies of the text were already being made before it had been presented to the Emperor.
It appears that three illustrated texts were produced in quite rapid succession between 1602 and 1605. One copy is currently in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art (acc.no. 2005.145), another is in the Lahore Museum (inv. M-645) and our manuscript presents the third. The Cleveland and the Lahore manuscripts still have the original illustrations whereas our copy now retains only the text. A number of illustrations which match the size of the text panel and the style and layout of the headings found in our manuscript were sold at Sotheby’s London, 5 July 1965, lots 16-18 and 56-63. Before this manuscript came to light, Pedro Moura Carvalho had suggested that the illustrations dispersed at auction belonged previously to the Cleveland manuscript (Pedro Moura Carvalho, Mir’at al-Quds (Mirror of Holiness): a Life of Christ for Emperor Akbar, Boston, 2012, p. 59). It is more likely that the paintings sold at Sotheby’s and others which have since been discovered belong to our manuscript as they illustrate scenes already depicted in the Cleveland example. It is also important to note that our manuscript has 15ll. of nasta’liq per folio whereas the Cleveland manuscript has only 13ll. Unfortunately many of the illustrations which were originally contained in our manuscript have now been laid down on margins obscuring the text on the reverse but the scale suggests that may also have had 15ll. Following the style of the paintings which illustrated our manuscript it can be deduced that our copy was produced after the Lahore copy and possibly before the copy now in Cleveland. Our manuscript is an interesting new discovery in the study of this prolific yet short-lived era of religious alchemy fostered by the Mughal Emperor Akbar.
The illustrations which were previously included in our manuscript include:
1. The presentation at the Temple with Saint Simeon, Labiner Collection
2. The Ascension of Jesus, Ex-Binney Collection, San Diego Museum of Art. 1990:0309
3. Mary sweeps the stable, Victoria and Albert Museum, 170-1950
4. Moses and the Plague of Serpents, Ex-Binney Collection, San Diego Museum of Art, 1990:0308
5. Angels appear to the Shepherds, Ex-Benkaim Collection, Cleveland Museum of Art
6. Christ Enters Jerusalem, British Museum, 1965 7-24 05
7. Christ with the disciples on a boat, Philadelphia Free Library, 19.M46
8. Mary Magdalen washes the feet of Jesus, location unknown
9. Jesus Preaches to Peter and the Disciples, sold Maggs London
11. Elijah fed by the ravens, L.A. Mayer Museum for Islamic Art, Ms 4-68
12. The Crucifixion, sold in these Rooms, 10 October 2013, lot 167
It appears that three illustrated texts were produced in quite rapid succession between 1602 and 1605. One copy is currently in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art (acc.no. 2005.145), another is in the Lahore Museum (inv. M-645) and our manuscript presents the third. The Cleveland and the Lahore manuscripts still have the original illustrations whereas our copy now retains only the text. A number of illustrations which match the size of the text panel and the style and layout of the headings found in our manuscript were sold at Sotheby’s London, 5 July 1965, lots 16-18 and 56-63. Before this manuscript came to light, Pedro Moura Carvalho had suggested that the illustrations dispersed at auction belonged previously to the Cleveland manuscript (Pedro Moura Carvalho, Mir’at al-Quds (Mirror of Holiness): a Life of Christ for Emperor Akbar, Boston, 2012, p. 59). It is more likely that the paintings sold at Sotheby’s and others which have since been discovered belong to our manuscript as they illustrate scenes already depicted in the Cleveland example. It is also important to note that our manuscript has 15ll. of nasta’liq per folio whereas the Cleveland manuscript has only 13ll. Unfortunately many of the illustrations which were originally contained in our manuscript have now been laid down on margins obscuring the text on the reverse but the scale suggests that may also have had 15ll. Following the style of the paintings which illustrated our manuscript it can be deduced that our copy was produced after the Lahore copy and possibly before the copy now in Cleveland. Our manuscript is an interesting new discovery in the study of this prolific yet short-lived era of religious alchemy fostered by the Mughal Emperor Akbar.
The illustrations which were previously included in our manuscript include:
1. The presentation at the Temple with Saint Simeon, Labiner Collection
2. The Ascension of Jesus, Ex-Binney Collection, San Diego Museum of Art. 1990:0309
3. Mary sweeps the stable, Victoria and Albert Museum, 170-1950
4. Moses and the Plague of Serpents, Ex-Binney Collection, San Diego Museum of Art, 1990:0308
5. Angels appear to the Shepherds, Ex-Benkaim Collection, Cleveland Museum of Art
6. Christ Enters Jerusalem, British Museum, 1965 7-24 05
7. Christ with the disciples on a boat, Philadelphia Free Library, 19.M46
8. Mary Magdalen washes the feet of Jesus, location unknown
9. Jesus Preaches to Peter and the Disciples, sold Maggs London
11. Elijah fed by the ravens, L.A. Mayer Museum for Islamic Art, Ms 4-68
12. The Crucifixion, sold in these Rooms, 10 October 2013, lot 167