Youth Seated by a Willow; Single Page Illustration, by Muhammad Yusuf, c. 1600–1650
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Youth Seated by a Willow; Single Page Illustration

style of Muhammad Yusuf (Iranian)

c. 1600–1650

Medium
ink, gold, and colors on paper
Classification
Manuscript
Dimensions
Sheet: 33.5 x 21.9 cm (13 3/16 x 8 5/8 in.); Image: 15 x 9.6 cm (5 7/8 x 3 3/4 in.)
Culture
Iran, Isfahan, Safavid period (1501-1722)
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art, Islamic Art
Credit line
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
Rights
Public domain (CC0), as the museum states it.
Who can see it
Little Ones profiles and older: it shows gentle subjects for the very young. How works are placed

View at the Cleveland Museum of Art

About this work

A new aesthetic developed under the socially and economically conscious Shah ’Abbas I (reigned 1587–1629). Single polychrome paintings of elegantly clad youth were produced in considerable number during the 1600s, primarily for people with means who collected them and had them mounted in albums. Instead of functioning as portraits, the images of these courtly figures express ideals of youth and beauty. This young man’s lavish sash and turban enriched with costly gold thread proclaim his high status.