{"id":145,"date":"2018-02-09T16:55:14","date_gmt":"2018-02-09T16:55:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thehollyfest.org\/?page_id=145"},"modified":"2018-02-11T18:28:00","modified_gmt":"2018-02-11T18:28:00","slug":"charles-melville-and-firuza-abdullaeva","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/www.thehollyfest.org\/index.php\/charles-melville-and-firuza-abdullaeva\/","title":{"rendered":"Firuza Abdullaeva and Charles Melville"},"content":{"rendered":"

Illustrating cross-culturalism in text and image: Zulaykha, Phaedra, Sudaba, Venus, Potiphar\u2019s wife, and other femmes fatales<\/h1>\n

A few years ago ILEX Foundation published the proceedings of the conference held several years previously at the CAMA Institute in Mumbai. One of the papers there was about the correlation between the Biblical-Qur\u2019anic story of Joseph\/Yusuf and the Wife of Potiphar\/Zulaykha and the Soghdian\/Khwarazmian story later versified by Firdawsi in his Shahnama<\/em>, already in a fully shaped tale about Siyavush and Sudaba.<\/p>\n

However, this story goes far beyond the Irano-Semitic, or Irano-Hellenistic literary links. It is a truly universal narrative, geographically and chronologically: from the Ancient Egyptian tale about Apu and Bata to Jami\u2019s Yusuf and Zulaykha, Tsvetaeva\u2019s Phaedra, Thomas Mann\u2019s Joseph<\/em>, or Andrew Lloyd Weber\u2019s \u2018Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat\u2019. Almost all literary versions have received their interpretations in other artistic forms: visual, musical, dramatic, etc. There are known myriads of representations of the mystical story of a beautiful and wealthy aristocrat who sacrificed her life for the sake of her love, although originally she was depicted as a ruthless villain. Not surprisingly, even Firdawsi, who had already had his own version of the story in his magnum opus with Sudaba and Siyavush as protagonists, was ascribed as the author of another later interpretation, \u2018more appropriate\u2019 for a proper Muslim of his age. However, in all eras the most famous poets, writers, artists, playwrights and composers were eager to offer their own reading of this legend, often competing with each other. Even in one manuscript, like the copy commissioned by Shah Tahmasp, there are two miniature paintings of the same scene executed by two different painters and their teams.<\/p>\n

As a small present for such a scholar as Holly, who, like the story about Sudaba\/Siyavush-Phaedra\/Hippolytos-Venus\/Adonis, connects in her research East and West, past and present, we affectionately offer three verses accompanied by their visual representations. The poem of course is hardly a literary masterpiece, but the verses are playfully inspired by the topic of the images. It should be easy enough to match the texts with the images.<\/p>\n

The images intend to work as a puzzle, which might appeal to the erudite reader and viewer.<\/p>\n

The esteemed recipient of the festschrift might enjoy deciphering the origin of the prototypes which inspired our presents, or maybe entertain her guests in the same manner as the masters of Takht-i Sulayman, who supposedly used the tiles with the texts and images on the walls of the palace to be recognised by their guests during royal feasts.<\/p>\n

Verses in honour of Holly Davidson<\/h2>\n

There is a young lady called Holly
\nWhose parakeet isn\u2019t named Polly
\nThough wonderf\u2019ly sage
\nShe looks half her age
\nAnd her company\u2019s always so jolly.<\/p>\n

*\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 *\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 *<\/p>\n

Just like the Koranic Zulaykha
\n[And not Beerbohm\u2019s Zuleika]
\nShe\u2019s gorgeous, with many an acre
\nThough Holly persisted
\nYoung Yusuf resisted
\nThough only a fool could forsake her.<\/p>\n

*\u00a0\u00a0 *\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 *<\/p>\n

Now Greg is a man of great charm
\nWhose Homeric skills do disarm
\nUnlike Siyavush
\nHe ran in a rush
\nBut towards her, not off in alarm.<\/p>\n

Images<\/h2>\n
\"\"
Figure 1. \u2019Siyavush Stands Accused by Sudaba before Kai Kavus\u2019, Shahnama of Shah Tahmasp, attributed to \u2018Abd al-Vahhab, Tabriz, ca. 1530\u201335, 1970.301.23, f. 163v \u00a9 MMA, New York https:\/\/www.metmuseum.org\/art\/collection\/search\/452132<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Figure 2.\u2019Sudaba\u2019s Second Accusation Against Siyavush is Judged\u2019, Shahnama of Shah Tahmasp, attributed to Qasim ibn \u2018Ali, Tabriz, ca. 1525\u201330, 1970.301.24, f. 164v \u00a9 MMA, New York https:\/\/www.metmuseum.org\/art\/collection\/search\/452133<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Figure 3. Rembrandt van Rijn, \u2018Joseph Accused by Potiphar’s Wife\u2019, Amsterdam, 1655, 1937.1.79 \u00a9 National Gallery of Art, Washington https:\/\/www.wikiart.org\/en\/rembrandt\/joseph-accused-by-potiphar-s-wife-1655<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Figure 4. Firuza Melville, \u2018Sudaba Trying to Seduce Joseph\u2019, Cambridge, U.K., 2016, inspired by \u2018Joseph and the Wife of Potiphar\u2019 by Master of the Joseph Legend, Brussels, ca. 1495, 13180 \u00a9 Alte Pinakothek, Munich and \u2018The Seduction of Yusuf\u2019 by Kamal al-Din Bihzad, Sa\u2019di, Bustan, Rajab 893\/1488, Adab Farsi 908 (22 M), fol. 52v \u00a9 Dar al-Kutub, Cairo.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"
Figure 5. Firuza Melville, \u2018Phaedra trying to seduce Siyavush\u2019, Cambridge, U.K., 2016, inspired by Philipp Veit \u2018Joseph and the Wife of Potiphar\u2019, fresco, 1816-17, \u00a9 Casa Bartholdy, Berlin and \u2018The Seduction of Yusuf\u2019 by Bihzad, Sa\u02bfdi, Bustan, Herat, Rajab 893\/1488, Adab Farsi 908 (22 M), fol. 52v \u00a9 Dar al-Kutub, Cairo.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Figure 6. Firuza Melville \u2018Queen Olga smoking qalyan\u2019, Cambridge, U.K., 2017, inspired by Unknown Qajar artist, \u2018Harem Girl smoking qalyan\u2019, Iran, 19th century \u00a9 Olga Davidson.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Figure 7. \u2019Holly at Bellows Falls\u2019, August 2014, \u00a9 photo Charles Melville<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"
Figure 8. \u2019Siegfried\u2019, August 2014, \u00a9 photo Charles Melville<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Illustrating cross-culturalism in text and image: Zulaykha, Phaedra, Sudaba, Venus, Potiphar\u2019s wife, and other femmes fatales A few years ago ILEX Foundation published the proceedings of the conference held several years previously at the CAMA Institute in Mumbai. One of the papers there was about the correlation between the Biblical-Qur\u2019anic story of Joseph\/Yusuf and the … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Firuza Abdullaeva and Charles Melville”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.thehollyfest.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/145"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.thehollyfest.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.thehollyfest.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.thehollyfest.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.thehollyfest.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=145"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.thehollyfest.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/145\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":423,"href":"http:\/\/www.thehollyfest.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/145\/revisions\/423"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.thehollyfest.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=145"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}