In their composition and type of characters they are close to the miniatures from the collection of Keire (London) which date back to around 1500. The appearance of a king drawn there on a takhta reminds one of Sultan Husayn Mirza made familiar by the portrait of Behzad, in which he looks a little stouter.
The refinement of lines, fine working of ornamental details and the harmony of fresh, often contrasting colors, are inherent in both miniatures. It is quite probable that, they were created in the Herat studios.
The copy of “Akhloq-i Muhsiniy” copied in 907 AH/1501 and probably decorated at the same time is considered a brilliant example of illustrated and illuminated manuscripts from heart of the Timurid period. Unfortunately, in accordance with the Muslim prohibition on the depiction of living creatures, some fanatics repainted the miniatures with ornamental drawing. Only some fine fragments of landscape and architectural background with column aywans and decor, which survive in the upper part of the folio, are the evidence of the real masterpieces which were destroyed.
In the miniatures of the Herat school of the second half of the 15th century (“Majnun in the desert”, the British Museum, “Farhad in the mountains”, the Bodleian Library and an illustration to the “Shah-nama”, about 1370, Topkapu Saray 14) there is a horizon interpreted as a mountain ridge with uncovered or leafed trees (juniper), but it could not be considered as a direct analogue with “plastic interpretation of smooth rocks” in “Akhloq-i Muhsiniy.”
You can learn more about this topic in the book-album “The Collection of the Al-Biruni Institute of Oriental studies, the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Uzbekistan” (part five, “Miniature and Calligraphy”) (Volume XXV) from the series "The Cultural Legacy of Uzbekistan".
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