Munajat de l'imam 'Ali (Suppliques de l'Imam Ali),... Lot n° 40

Munajat of Imam ‘Ali, signed by Rustam ‘Ali Shahi, Persia, Safavid, dated 966AH / 1558-59AD Iran, Safavid art, dated hegira 966 (=1558-59) Manuscript in Arabic and Persian, six leaves, on brown paper calligraphed in elegant nasta'liq on 12 lines per page in white, pink or yellow ink, in cloudy cartouches, and decorated with two-lobed arabesque motifs. Mounted in an album, probably from the Qajar period, with different-colored paper margins decorated in gold with plant and animal motifs. Signature on f. 6 r., with date. Later binding. Text: 16 x 8.5 cm; Page: 26.5 x 16.5 cm A pupil of Sultan Ali Mashadi and nephew of the painter Behzad, Rustam 'Ali Shahi began working in 1530 for the library of Prince Bahram Mirza (1517-49 AD). In 1540-41, he was in Tabriz, where he copied a Divan by Hafiz. He then moved to Mashhad, where he worked for seven years under the patronage of Prince Bahram Mirza's son, Ibrahim Mirza, until the end of his life in 1562/63. The munajat, or "confidential interviews", of the first Shiite imam Ali b. Abi-Talib take the form of prayers addressed to God. These books served as a doctrinal guide for Shiites from medieval times onwards. Provenance : Public sale, France. Former French private collection. References: Bayani, Mehdi, Ahval va ʾathar-i khushnivisan-i irani, vol.1-2, Tehran, 1984, vol I, pp. 207-209. Oeuvre comparable / Similar work: The style of this manuscript can be compared with another Munajat 'Ali, dated 967 H. (=1559-60), signed by Mahmud Nishapuri, see Christies, Art of The Islamic and Indian World, London, October 23, 2007, lot 103. Only three complete manuscripts signed by Rustam 'Ali survive / Seulement trois manuscrits complets signés de Rustam 'Ali subsistent: Gulistan de Sa'di daté de 919 H/1513-14 J.-C., Salar Jung Museum and Library, Hyderabad, inv.no.a/N.241.M., no.19); Divan by Hafiz, dated AD 947/1540-1541 and copied in Tabriz, Calouste Gubelkian Foundation, Lisbon (inv. no. GULB.LA.165); Gulistan by Sa'di, dated AD 950/1543-1544, offered at Sotheby's, April 28, 2004, lot 30. Munajat of Imam 'Ali, signed by Rustam 'Ali Shahi, Persia, Safavid, dated 966AH / 1558-59AD