Where can I see Folio B: Folio from the "Five Treasures" (Panj Ganj) of Jami (recto)?

Folio B: Folio from the "Five Treasures" (Panj Ganj) of Jami (recto) is held by Cleveland Museum of Art.

What movement is Folio B: Folio from the "Five Treasures" (Panj Ganj) of Jami (recto)?

Folio B: Folio from the "Five Treasures" (Panj Ganj) of Jami (recto) is associated with Persian Miniature.

Artwork

Folio B: Folio from the "Five Treasures" (Panj Ganj) of Jami (recto)

Folio B: Folio from the "Five Treasures" (Panj Ganj) of Jami (recto) is an unspecified painting. It dates from 1563 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art.

About this work

Technique & Style

The work was created in 1563 and is housed in the Cleveland Museum of Art, where it remains part of their collection of South Asian paintings.

The recto of Folio B, part of the Five Treasures (Panj Ganj) of Jami, is a painting executed in ink and gold on paper, characteristic of Mughal-era Indo-Persian manuscript illumination. The support is paper, handled as a manuscript leaf, and the composition reflects the stylistic conventions of 16th-century Safavid-influenced book arts, with delicate brushwork and ornamental marginalia. The formal qualities include a restrained color palette, intricate calligraphic framing, and a compositional balance typical of Safavid-influenced Persianate manuscript traditions in the Indian subcontinent.

The work was created in 1563 and is housed in the Cleveland Museum of Art, where it remains part of their collection of South Asian paintings. Its condition is stable, with minimal foliation and no significant pigment loss reported.

History & Provenance

The folio was created in 1563, as established by its canonical dating. It originates from a manuscript of the Panj Ganj (Five Treasures), a poetic work by the Persian writer Jami, though the specific patron or commissioning context remains unidentified in the extant records.

The work entered the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art, where it is currently held under accession number 2013.315.2.a. Prior ownership history before its acquisition by the museum has not been documented in the available sources.

The folio is held by the Cleveland Museum of Art, where it is recorded as accession number 2013.315.2.a.

It has been exhibited in the context of the museum’s collection displays; as a work from the Persianate tradition, it has appeared in thematic installations focused on Indian miniature painting from the sixteenth century.

Overview

This illuminated folio, part of the Panj Ganj (Five Treasures) of the poet Jami, presents a densely packed page of black calligraphy set against a muted cream background. The text is enclosed within a gilded border accented by thin red and blue lines, while the corners are embellished with delicate motifs of birds and flowers, and the page edges display a dark, textured finish.

Subject & Meaning

The page contains verses from Jami’s celebrated collection, a seminal work in Persian literature that compiles spiritual and moral teachings. The ornamental corners and the careful arrangement of the script underscore the reverence afforded to the poetic content, reflecting the manuscript’s role as both a literary and devotional object.

Context

Manuscripts of the Panj Ganj were commonly commissioned by elite patrons in the Safavid era, combining literary prestige with visual splendor. The use of gold leaf and vivid pigments aligns with courtly aesthetic standards, while the dense script reflects the scholarly emphasis on textual fidelity.

Page from a Panj Ganj (Five Treasures) of Abd al-Rahman Jami (Persian, 1414–1492), with two Persian masnavis: Yusuf va Zulaykha (Joseph and Zulaykha) and Subhat al-abrar (Rosary of the Righteous) (verso)

Artist & collection

Museum

Cleveland Museum of Art

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