Lovers and beloveds: A composite of scenes from Persian, Urdu, and Sanskrit literature
1735
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
About the artist
1735
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
Lovers and beloveds: A composite of scenes from Persian, Urdu, and Sanskrit literature is a 1735 unspecified by Chitarman II, a Baroque work, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.
You see a crowded painting filled with couples from old Indian stories—princes, princesses, and gods all mixed together. The center shows Joseph, the biblical figure, glowing with a golden halo. Around him, women cut oranges but stare at him instead, slicing their fingers by accident. The artist packed ten different love stories into one scene, like a visual puzzle. If you like this, look up *Indian art* for more paintings like it.
The figure of Joseph, identified by his halo, sits in the center near the top of this painting of heroes and heroines of ten different Persian, Urdu, and Sanskrit romances. The depicted scene occurs after Joseph has been purchased by Zulaykha in Egypt. Zulaykha, wishing to show him off to her friends and acquaintances, invites them to her home where she supplies oranges and knives. When the women see Joseph, they all are so distracted by his divine beauty that they accidentally cut their hands while peeling their oranges, but remain mesmerized by his appearance. The dramatic scene in the…
Below the bearded poet Hafiz is the woman he loved; her name was Stick of Candy.
Read the full account in the museum source.
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