The Tragedy of Farhad and Shirin

Long before Romeo and Juliet would even be conceived or written in the Western world comes the tragedy of Farhad and Shirin, which comes from one of the great love epics of the Persian canon: immortalized by Nizami Ganjavi in his Khosrow and Shirin. In the tradition, Farhad is the humble sculptor whose love for Princess Shirin burns with such sincerity that even mountains seem like obstacles he can carve through. Here, the “waters” are not waters at all, but the mountain he was commanded to cut; a task set for him by Khosrow, the rival king, to keep him occupied and hopeless.

But Farhad, fed by devotion rather than ambition, nearly completes the impossible. It is then, unable to bear the threat of such pure love, that a messenger falsely announces Shirin’s death. In despair, Farhad lets the mountain claim him.

This miniature holds that moment of quiet catastrophe: the lovers separated by fate, the path carved through stone, the world blooming with the kind of beauty that only heightens tragedy. A tale where love is vast, sincere, and ultimately undone not by weakness, but by the fear it inspires in others.

Original miniature portrait (Origin: Bukhara), framed in double-glass frames (front and back viewable) to preserve both pigment and light. Dimensions: 42 cm x 36 cm.