While most of the depictions of the Asian spike-fiddle show men and women playing the instrument in a domestic or courtly context, one striking image does not. This fifteenth-century tinted drawing from Iran depicts two ferocious demons, one posing with the instrument and the other with an elegant Chinese blue-and-white porcelain bottle and a gold cup. The composition’s fine drawing is inspired by Central and East Asian styles, which played a critical role in fifteenth-century Iranian art.
Two fettered demons, (detail). Iran or Central Asia, Timurid period, 15th century. Ink, opaque watercolor and gold on paper. Purchase, F1937.25
Slide show and captions compiled by Michael Wilpers, performing arts programmer, with assistance from Moonsil Lee, based on Freer and Sackler Gallery records; Liang Mingyue, Music of the Billion: An Introduction to Chinese Musical Culture (New York: Heinrichshofen, 1985); and Jean During, et al., The Art of Persian Music (Washington, DC: Mage, 1991).
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