SA'ADI AND THE WISE MEN, PROBABLY FROM THE BUSTAN'E SA'ADI, SAFAVID, PERSIA, LATE 16TH CENTURY

Sa’adi and the wise men, probably from the Bustan’e Sa’adi, with a frontispiece decoration to the reverse, illuminated miniature on polished paper,single leaf, ink and gouache on paper heightened in gilt, depicting a king seated on a throne, with courtiers in waiting, in a palace garden with blossoming trees and wildlife around them, small lake with two swans in the foreground heightened in silver (now oxidized), image with striking blue borders extending outwards into the wider margins, reverse with elaborate gilt and polychrome decoration, once acting as a frontispiece to text, all illumination and decoration. Painting: 24.5 by 16 cm.PROVENANCE From the collection of Helen and Joe Darion