"The Combat of Rustam and Ashkabus", Folio from a Shahnama (Book of Kings)

Author: Abu'l Qasim Firdausi (935–1020)
Object Name: Folio from an illustrated manuscript
Date:ca. 1330–40
Geography: Attributed to Iran, probably Isfahan
Medium: Ink, opaque watercolor, gold, and silver on paper
Dimensions: Page: 8 x 5 3/16 in. (20.3 x 13.2 cm)
Painting: 1 11/16 x 4 3/16 in. (4.3 x 10.7 cm)
Classification: Codices
Credit Line: Bequest of Monroe C. Gutman, 1974
Accession Number: 1974.290.12

The arrogant enemy-hero Ashkabus scorns Rustam for facing him on foot, so Rustam ensures that Ashkabus will also be on foot by shooting his horse out from under him. The white cloud suggests the dust of battle. The warrior behind Rustam wears an aventail to protect his face and holds a shield of cane with a radiating pattern, both of which appear, similarly drawn, in other illustrations from this period and must therefore represent actual Ilkhanid armor.

Provenance: Ph. Walter Schulz, Leipzig, Germany (by 1914); Professor O. Moll, Düsseldorf, Germany ; Monroe C. Gutman, New York (by 1929–d. 1974; bequeathed to MMA)
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York