Walters Ms. W.604, Five poems (quintet)Khamsah-i Niẓāmīخمسه نظامىNiẓāmī Ganjavī, 1140 or 41-1202 or 3Ilyās ibn Yūsuf Niẓāmī Ganjavīالياس بن يوسف نظامى گنجوىAuthor dates preferred by cataloger: d. 605 AH / 1209 CEPrincipal catalogerGacek, AdamCatalogerLandau, AmyCatalogerSmith, SitaEditorBockrath, DianeContributorBarrera, ChristinaContributorEmery, DougContributorHerbert, LynleyContributorNoel, WilliamContributorSimpson, ShreveContributorTabritha, ArielContributorToth, Michael B.ContributorValle, ChiaraConservatorJewell, StephanieConservatorQuandt, AbigailThe Walters Art Museum

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This is an illuminated and illustrated Timurid copy of the Khamsah of Niẓāmī Ganjavī (d. 605 AH / 1209 CE), completed in 886 AH / 1481 CE. The text is written in black nastaʿlīq script with chapter/section headings in red. Illuminated headings written in a foliated New Abbasid (broken cursive) style in white ink on a blue background with polychrome decoration introduce the poems of the Khamsah (fols. 26b, 97a, 146b, and 202b). (The beginning of Makhzan al-asrār is now missing). There are sixty illustrations. The reddish brown leather binding dates to the thirteenth century AH / nineteenth CE.BaltimoreThe Walters Art MuseumW.604The primary language in this manuscript is Persian. The secondary language of this manuscript is Arabic.fols. 1b - 323bKhamsah-i Niẓāmīخمسه نظامىبسم الله الرحمن الرحيم هست كليد در كنج حكيم...Contains the following poems: Makhzan al-asrār (fols. 1b-25b), Khusraw va Shīrīn (fols. 26b-96a), Laylá va Majnūn (fols. 97a-145b), Haft paykar (fols. 146b-201a), and Iskandarnāmah (fols. 202b-323b), with Iqbālnāmah (second part of the Iskandarnāmah) beginning on fol. 281b(fol. 25b): tammat al-kitāb bi-ʿawn al-Malik al-Wahhāb /1/ taḥrīran fī shahr Ramaḍān al-mubārak /2/ sanat khams wa-thamānīn /3/ wa-thamānimi<ʾ>ah /4/ m (= tamma) /5/ (fol. 96a): tammat al-kitāb Khusraw va Shīrīn bi-ʿawn Malik [sic] /1/ al-Wahhāb bi-tārīkh ghurrah-ʾi Safar sanat-i /2/ 885 /3/ m (= tamma) /4/ (fol. 145b): tammat al-kitāb Laylá va Majnūn /1/ bi-ʿawn Malik-i /2/ bīchūn-i bi-tārīkh-i /3/ khāmis-i /4/ shahr-i /5/ Rabīʿ-i /6/ avval /7/ sanat-i /8/ 886 /9/ (fol. 201a): tammat al-kitāb Haft paykar /1/ bi-tawfīq Allāh taʿālá /2/ bi-tārīkh 22 Ramaḍān /3/ sanat 885 /4/Four short colophons (25b, 96a, 145b, 201a) in Arabic at the end of Makhzan al-asrār (dated Ramaḍān 885), Khusraw va Shīrīn (dated 1st Safar 885), Laylá va Majnūn (dated 5 Rabīʿ I 886), and Haft paykar (dated 22 Ramaḍān 885); name of scribe not recorded

Laid paper

Foliation: i+323+i23.516.017.512.0

Written obliquely on versos

Framing lines in gold, blue, and blackWritten in black nastaʿlīq script with chapter/section headings in red; illuminated headings written in a foliated New Abbasid (broken cursive) style in white inkSixty illustrations; illuminated headings for each book (fols. 26b, 97a, 146b, and 202b [beginning of Makhzan al-asrār now missing]); framing lines in gold, blue, and blackIlluminated incipit with headpieceKhusraw va ShīrīnIncipit; headpieceThis illuminated incipit page introduces the second poem of the Khamsah, Khusraw va Shīrīn, and has a headpiece in foliated New Abbasid (broken cursive) style inscribed: dhikr al-qadīm awlá bi-al-taqdīm.Khusraw prostrates before his father, Hurmuz, and begs for pardonKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationShāpūr shows Shīrīn Khusraw's portraitKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationKhusraw watching Shīrīn bathingKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationKhusraw and Shīrīn with Mahīn BānūKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationShāpūr asks Shīrīn to marry KhusrawKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationKhusraw enthronedKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationKhusraw and Shīrīn at rest from the huntKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationKhusraw and Shīrīn play poloKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationKhusraw’s men skin the lionKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationKhusraw and the Roman EmperorKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationKhusraw fighting Bahrām ChūbīnahKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationShīrīn weeps over Khusraw’s absenceKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationKhusraw’s courtiers announce the death of Bahrām ChūbīnahKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationFarhād faints at the sight of ShīrīnKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationShīrīn visits Farhād and the pool of milkKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationFarhād is brought before KhusrawKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationFarhād cuts through the rocky mountainKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationFarhād carries Shīrīn on her horseKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationA woman offers wine to KhusrawKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationKhusraw asks Shīrīn for forgiveness after being unfaithfulKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationShāpūr and Shīrīn in conversationKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationKhusraw and Shīrīn entertained by Bārbad and NakīsāKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationKhusraw declines the Prophet Muhammad’s attempt to covert him to Islam in a dreamKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationKing Qizil Arslān welcomes the poet NiẓāmīKhusraw va ShīrīnIllustrationIlluminated incipit with headpieceLaylá va MajnūnIncipit; headpieceThis illuminated incipit page introduces the third poem of the Khamsah, Laylá va Majnūn, and has a headpiece in foliated New Abbasid (broken cursive) style inscribed: al-ḥamd li-Llāh ʿalá niʿmātih.Majnūn and his father visit the mosque in MeccaLaylá va MajnūnIllustrationNawfal and his men attack Laylá’s tribeLaylá va MajnūnIllustrationA widow leads Majnūn in chains before Laylá’s pavilionLaylá va MajnūnIllustrationLaylá’s husband, Ibn Salām, falls to the ground in the bridal chamberLaylá va MajnūnIllustrationMajūn weeps at his father’s tombLaylá va MajnūnIllustrationMajnūn’s mother combs his untidy hairLaylá va MajnūnIllustrationAn old man sent by Laylá sees Majnūn on the rocksLaylá va MajnūnIllustrationLaylá and Majūn faint at the sight of each otherLaylá va MajnūnIllustrationMajnūn lies prostrate at Laylá’s tombLaylá va MajnūnIllustrationMajnūn lies dead on Laylá’s tombLaylá va MajnūnIllustrationIlluminated incipit with headpieceHaft paykarIncipit; headpieceThis illuminated incipit page introduces the fourth poem of the Khamsah, Haft paykar, and has a headpiece inscribed with the doxological formula (basmalah) in a foliated New Abbasid (broken cursive) style.Bahrām Gūr kills a lion and a wild assHaft paykarIllustrationBahrām Gūr kills two lions and puts a crown on his headHaft paykarIllustrationFitnah carries a bull on her shoulders before Bahrām GūrHaft paykarIllustrationBahrām Gūr in the yellow pavilionHaft paykarIllustrationBahrām Gūr in the green pavilionHaft paykarIllustrationBahrām Gūr in the red pavilionHaft paykarIllustrationBahrām Gūr in the blue pavilionHaft paykarIllustrationIlluminated incipit with headpieceIskandarnāmahIncipit; headpieceThis illuminated incipit page introduces the fifth poem of the Khamsah, Iskandarnāmah, and has a headpiece with an unidentified inscription in foliated New Abbasid (broken cursive) style.The birth of Alexander the GreatIskandarnāmahIllustrationThe Ethiopians attack the castle of the EgyptiansIskandarnāmahIllustrationAlexander the Great fights the EthiopiansIskandarnāmahIllustrationAlexander the Great fights the Persian King DariusIskandarnāmahIllustrationThe tomb of DariusIskandarnāmahIllustrationRawshanak, the daughter of Darius, and Alexander the Great sleep in their bridal chamberIskandarnāmahIllustrationAlexander the Great is entertained by the ruler of BardaʿIskandarnāmahIllustrationAlexander the Great enthroned during the New Year celebrationsIskandarnāmahIllustrationAlexander the Great and his army attack a fortressIskandarnāmahIllustrationAlexander the Great in bed with an Indian girl given to him by the Indian King KaydīIskandarnāmahIllustrationSeparated by a green curtain, a Chinese and Roman artist compete with each otherIskandarnāmahIllustrationA Russian warrior pursues the Persian warrior ZarīrvandIskandarnāmahIllustrationAlexander the Great captures a Russian warrior with his lassoIskandarnāmahIllustrationAlexander the Great drinks in the company of a Russian girl playing the harpIskandarnāmahIllustrationAlexander the Great with a Chinese girl given to him by the King of China (erased)IskandarnāmahIllustrationIlluminated incipit with headpieceIqbālnāmahIncipit; headpieceThis illuminated incipit page introduces the Iqbālnāmah, the second part of the fifth poem of the Khamsah, Iskandarnāmah, and has a headpiece with an inscription in foliated New Abbasid (broken cursive) style reading: wa-adhkuru Allāh aʿlá wa-akbar.Alexander the Great visits SocratesIqbālnāmahIllustrationAlexander the Great is entertained by a beautiful girl in QandhārIqbālnāmahIllustrationAlexander the Great builds a great wall at GogIqbālnāmahIllustrationThe coffin of Alexander the Great carried in processionIqbālnāmahIllustration

Dates to the thirteenth century AH / nineteenth CE; blind-tooled reddish brown leather (no flap)

Ramaḍān 885-Rabīʿ I 886 / 1481IranWalters Art Museum, 1931, by Henry Walters bequestRelevant WorksStorey, C. A. Persian Literature: a Bio-Bibliographical Survey, Vol. 2. (London: Luzac, 1927- ), 438-495.ArtMedicineMuseumPoetryScriptMuhammad, the ProphetRomaniaKashmiriHorsesWalters Art MuseumBlockbookDocumentGeneologyAstrologyDevotionHistoryLegalLiterature -- PoetryLiterature -- ProseLiturgyPhilosophyScienceScience -- MedicineScriptureSufismTheologyMineralogyLogicGeographyGeomancyCosmologyCartographyFortune-tellingKoranQur`anFirmanPalimpsestPrayerBibleGospelsPsalterMissalLectionaryBook of HoursAntiphonaryPrayerbookHomilaryProcessionalHorologionBreviaryHymnalChroniclePsalter/HoursMaghrebSub-Saharan (West) AfricaTurkeyAfghanistanCentral Arab Lands (Near East)Central AsiaEgyptEnglandIndiaIranIraqPakistanGermanyFranceAustriaNetherlandsEthiopiaArmeniaFlandersGreeceMamlukMughalOttomanOttonianArmenianByzantineAbbasidQajarRajputChristianArabicAustrianDutchEgyptianFatimidGermanIndianIslamicPersianSafavidTimuridTurkishUmayyadEnglishFrenchFlemishEthiopianCarolingianCalligraphyChartsColophonHeadpieceIlluminationIllustrationMedallionMiniatureOrnamentPainting'Kufic'Early Abbasid scriptRaginiRomanesqueGothicWatermarkTreasure BindingGrotesquesHistoriated initialInhabited initialCarolingian MinusculeGothic Book handWhite-vine letteringEnglish secretaryTexturaBatardaHumanisticUncialAccordion bookAlbumBookCodexManuscriptHeraldrySaint's LifeDrawingGrisailleOriginal BindingBindingNew Abbasid stylecharterLiturgicalDevotionalScripturalTheologicalLegalHistoricalScientificScientific -- MedicalLiterary -- ProseLiterary -- PoetryPhilosophicalAstrologicalSufiEnglishBookCalligraphyCodexIlluminationIllustrationIranIslamicManuscriptPersianTimuridWalters Art MuseumNew Abbasid styleLiterature -- Poetry