The Prophet Muhammad and His Companions at a Feast (painting, recto; text, verso), illustrated folio from a manuscript of Siyar-i Nabi (The Life of the Prophet) by Mustafa Darir of Erzurum

This is an illustrated folio from a copy of the Siyer-i Nebi, a work on the life of the Prophet Muhammad. It was written in Turkish by a Turkish poet (Darir of Erzurum) in Cairo for the Mamluk sultan of Egypt in 1388. Enjoyed among court circles, the Ottoman sultan Murad III (r. 1574-1595) commissioned a multi-volume imperial copy with 814 illustrations in the 1590s. It was expertly copied and illustrated by Ottoman court artists. This scene depicts the Prophet at a feast with his companions during military campaigns around the port city of Yanbu, in present-day Saudi Arabia. In the miniature following 16th century norms, the face of the Prophet is covered and the flaming halo around his body indicates his prophetic status. The artist chose contemporary Ottoman details, such as blue-and-white ceramic dishes and gilded tableware along with architectural details, to visualize the actual setting of the event that took place in 623.