The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 19, 2024

Sultan and Musicians

Sultan and Musicians

c. 1650
Image: 16.9 x 20.4 cm (6 5/8 x 8 1/16 in.); Border: 20.3 x 23.6 cm (8 x 9 5/16 in.)

Did You Know?

The two singers with open mouths may be performing a work by a mystic of the Sufi branch of Islam, given the essential role of music in Sufism and the pious mood of the all-male gathering.

Description

The tone-on-tone pale mustard-yellow carpet and orange floor cushion furnish the terrace with a seat of honor for the figure dressed in white. The peacock-feather whisk held by an attendant behind him is an emblem of his royal status. Lying conspicuously before his knees, Muslim prayer beads mark him as a man of piety. He also partakes in courtly pleasures of hookah smoking and paan chewing. Green triangular paan packets consist of betel nut, lime, and flavorful aromatics such as cinnamon or coconut, wrapped in betel leaf. A brass spittoon by his side would be used for spitting throughout the enjoyable process of chewing the packets.
  • ?–2012
    Dr. Norman Zaworski [1920–2013], Cleveland, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    2012–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Carpets and Canopies in Mughal India​ (Indian art rotation). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 22-September 8, 2024).
    Indian Gallery 242 Rotation – April-November 2018. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (April 2-November 18, 2018).
  • {{cite web|title=Sultan and Musicians|url=false|author=|year=c. 1650|access-date=19 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2012.300