BUKHARA, UZBEKISTAN, CIRCA 1525-35

The Bukharan school of painting, which was influenced by the Herat style, is characterized by a bright palette, golden skies, and the use of a black ground to set off fine arabesque designs. This scene of an enthroned prince in a chahar bagh garden, with the lavishly dressed attendants and fine metal objects and ceramics, provides a glimpse into the types of luxury goods found in the early sixteenth century. This painting would have once belonged to a lavishly illustrated Persian epic. A manuscript of Yusuz wa Zuleykha illustrated by Mahmud Muzahhib, including a Painting which depicts Yusuf enthroned with female attendants also in a chahar bagh was sold in these Rooms, 10 April 2014, lot 10. Mahmud al-Muzahhib was the most important artist of his generation in Bukhara, the leading proponent of the Bukhara school of painting under the Shaybanids, especially the great bibliophile Sultan 'Abd al-Aziz.

Another Bukhara painting depicting an outdoor scene was sold in these Rooms, 26 October 2017, lot 90.