The semi-nomadic tradition of Iranian rulers of the fourteenth to the seventeenth century forms the premise of this exhibition. A mobile court, moving between summer and winter quarters, reflected the ancient rythms of pastoral nomadism, and fostered and inclination toward life in the countryside and ephemeral architecture.

Paintings from the Eastern Islamic world that depict portable structures, such as tents and pavillions, will be contrasted with representations of permanent buildings that symbolically incorporate the countryside. Works of art produced in Iran during the Il-Khanid, Timurid and Safavid periods will form the core of the exhibition, supplemented by paintings from the Ottoman Turkey and Mughal India, whose rulers also shared a common nomadic imperial heritage.

Nomadic EncampmentFolio from a Khamsa (Quintet) of Nizami made for Shah Tahmasp I; Iran (Tabriz), Safavid period, c.1539-43 Gift of John Goelet; 1958.75a,b

Public Programming - ALL IN 1999

Gallery Talks
Saturday, June 5, 11:30 a.m., Arthur M. Sackler Museum
Sunday, July 25, 2 p.m., Arthur M. Sackler Museum
Sunday, August 15, 2 p.m., Arthur M. Sackler Museum
Mary McWilliams, Norma Jean Calderwood Associate Curator of Islamic and Later Indian Art, and curator of the exhibition, Arthur M. Sackler Museum

Courts and Countryside is organized by Mary McWilliams, Norma Jean Calderwood Associate Curator of Islamic and Later Indian Art.
Press release.