Probably painted by Shaykh Zadeh
From a Khamsa of Nizami, 1494 in Herat
You can feel the grief in this wonderful funeral scene. Women and men mourn openly and passionately for the death of Majnun, Laila's husband.
The story of Laila and Majnun is a tragic love story similar to Shakepeare's Romeo and Juliet. Nizami, a famous Persian poet, wrote a poetic version of the old tale, and it was illustrated many times by Persian miniature painters
Laila and Majnun are from different clans of the Arab nomads, but fall hopelessly in love. Through many trials and tribulations, Majnun goes insane (his name means "crazy" in Arabic) and wanders in the desert with the wild animals. As I remember the story, despite being befriended and fed in the desert by the wild animals, Majnun gradually dies of love-sickness. His body is discovered and brought back to his clan, where great mourning for his death ensues.
This is a simple and beautifully understated painting. I like the subdued colours of the mourners' clothes and their expressive poses. The tragedy and regret of the mourners is conveyed through their weeping and tearing of hair and clothes. I think its an excellent example of Persian painting that is a subtle masterpiece.
The city of Herat in the years of the Timurid dynasty was the centre of Persian painting in the Iranian area. The Timurid princes, particularly Shahrukh and Baysunghur, were cultured patrons renowned for their artistic tastes. Artists, poets and thinkers from across the Islamic world congregated in its major cities.
Many of these artists, including the incomparable Bihzad, moved to the new Safavid capital of Tabriz when that dynasty took over most of Iran in the early 16th century. There the golden age of Persian painting flourished for the next century.