Ascetic in Meditation | Yale University Art Gallery

17th century

On view, 2nd floor, Asian Art

The tiny rodent in the foreground of this painting is drinking from a blue-and-white Chinese porcelain bowl, a ceramic type that was revered and collected in Safavid Iran. The introverted ascetic’s complete lack of interest in this rare luxury item, however, suggests that he has reached a spiritual state beyond such petty concerns.

Medium: Ink and opaque watercolor on paper
Dimensions: without mounting: 4 7/16 × 2 1/2 in. (11.3 × 6.4 cm)
with mounting: 10 5/8 × 8 3/16 in. (27 × 20.8 cm)
Credit Line: The Vera M. and John D. MacDonald, B.A. 1927, Collection, Gift of Mrs. John D. MacDonald
Accession Number: 2001.138.7
Geography: Iran
Culture: Iranian/Persian, Islamic
Period: Safavid dynasty (1501–1722)
Classification: Paintings
Disclaimer: Note: This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect the Yale University Art Gallery’s complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of records is ongoing.

Provenance

Sale Collection Sevadjian, Paris, March, 1961 lot 7; sold to Vera M. MacDonald and John D. MacDonald, Boston, Mass., 1961; given to the Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Conn., 2001

Bibliography

Kishwar Rizvi, ed., Affect, Emotion, and Subjectivity in Early Modern Muslim Empires: New Studies in Ottoman, Safavid, and Mughal Art and Culture, 9 (Boston: Brill, 2018), cover ill., ill

Object copyright

No Copyright - United States

Additional information

Object/Work type

human figures (visual works)

Subject

ascetics meditation

Technical metadata and APIs

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