Collection Online as of June 6, 2023

Dragon in foliage with lion and phoenix heads

mid-1500s

attributed to Sahkulu

(Turkish, active 1526–56)

Turkey, Istanbul, Ottoman period

(1299–1922)

Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper

Sheet: 17.3 x 40.2 cm (6 13/16 x 15 13/16 in.)

Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1944.492

Location

not on view

Fun Fact

The lion head and phoenix head are part of the foliage, like fantastical blossoms.

Description

In this masterful drawing, a fierce undulating dragon entangled in swirling foliage is under attack from a lion above while assaulting a phoenix whose body dissolves into floral and foliate forms. The lion’s body undergoes a comparable zoomorphic transformation. This drawing represents the finest of the saz style, admired for elaborately curving flowers and leaves that flourished in the mid-1500s. The style was led by the Iranian-trained artist Sahkulu, who joined the Ottoman imperial painting atelier in Istanbul in 1526 and became the head of the atelier in 1545. A verse from the Qur'an, 40:44, is inscribed in the stamp: "And I commit my case unto God."

Inscriptions

Inscription

[stamp between dragon and phoenix, in Naskh script] And I commit my case unto God. [Qur’an 40:44]

Provenance

Charles Ricketts and Charles Shannon, R.A.

?-1944

(Philip Hofer, Cleveland, OH and New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)

1944-

The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Citations

Islamic Art: Selected Examples from the Loan Exhibition of Islamic Art at the Cleveland Museum of Art. [Cleveland]: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1944. Reproduced: p. 16. archive.org

The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958. Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 718. archive.org

The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 224. archive.org

The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 224. archive.org

The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 282. archive.org

Atıl, Esin. Traditional Ottoman Designs: Their Origin and Application. Istanbul: Mepa, Medya Pazarlama San. ve Tic. A.Ş, 1999. Reproduced: p. 13.

Roxburgh, David J. Turks: A Journey of a Thousand Years, 600-1600. London: Royal Academy of Arts, 2005. Reproduced: Fig. 37, p. 152.

Franklin, David and C. Griffith Mann. Treasures from the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2012. Reproduced: pp. 170-171.

Mackie, Louise W. Symbols of Power: Luxury Textiles from Islamic Lands, 7th-21st Century. Cleveland; New Haven: Cleveland Museum of Art; Yale University Press, 2015. Reproduced: P. 306, fig. 8.21; Mentioned: P. 305.

Exhibition history

Islamic Gallery 116 rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (June 19–December 4, 2017).

Islamic Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 3, 1944-February 2, 1945).

Exhibition of the Month: Components of Art: The Line. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 12-April 12, 1948).

Persian Decorative Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 15-March 16, 1952).

Muslim Miniature Paintings. Fondazione Giorgio Cini, Venice, Italy, Venezia, Italy (organizer) (September 1-October 31, 1962); The Asia Society Museum, New York, NY (December 4, 1962-February 3, 1963).

Turkish Art: An Exhibition Commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the Founding of the Turkish Republic. Fogg Art Museum/Harvard University, Cambridge, MA (organizer) (May 8-June 10, 1973).

Turkische Kunst und Kultur aus osmanischer Zeit (Turkish Art and Culture of the Ottoman Period). Museum fur Kunsthandwerk, Frankfurt, Germany (organizer) (April 25-June 30, 1985); Villa Hügel, Essen, Germany (August 7-October 27, 1985).

Object Lessons: Cleveland Creates an Art Museum. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 7-September 8, 1991).

Islamic art rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 3, 2012-December 9, 2013).