1961 Bjørn Wiinblad Poster, 1001 Arabian Nights, The Story of the Three Sisters, Shahryar & Scheherazade Middle Eastern tales wall art decor

This beautiful and colourful Bjorn Wiinblad poster shows a well-dressed character in robes, turban an dpointed shoes from and 1001 Arabian Nights tale astride a well decorated horse. On an outstretched hand, a bird points its head to the heavans and is singing. This might be the tale of the three sisters, where this would be the Princess Periezade who is on a magical quest to save her brothers and reclaim her royal birthright.
Printed by Permild & Rosengreen
Designed by Bjørn Wiinblad
Dimensions: 40.5 in x 20 in (103 cm x 51 cm)
Condition: Two small repaired tears to the top edge, see photos.

Bjørn Wiinblad was a Danish painter, designer and artist in ceramics, silver, bronze, textiles, and graphics. His work includes whimsical round-faced people, dressed in vaguely 19th-century costume. They are often surrounded by natural elements: twining vines, floral wreaths, and fantastical trees. When Wiinblad employed color, he did so with great assurance. His colors are saturated and strong—sometimes almost psychedelic—and are often supplemented with metallic gold or silver.

The Story of the Three Sisters

Kosrouschah the Sultan is wandering the city in disguise when he hears three sisters talking about their hypothetical future husbands. Amused, he decides to make their daydreams come true, marries one to the royal baker, the second to the royal cook, and marries the third himself. However, the older two soon grow jealous of the younger. When she gives birth to a son, they set him adrift in the canal and replace him with a puppy. They repeat this with her second son and with her daughter. The Sultana is imprisoned and humiliated, but the three children are adopted by a gardener and grow up together. They are named Bahman, Perviz and Periezade.

An old woman tells Periezade about three magical objects: the Talking Bird, the Singing Tree, and the Golden Water. Prince Bahman goes to look for them, but is turned to stone. Perviz falls to the same fate. Periezade follows after them. Like them, she receives advice from a dervish, and hears about the voices that she must not respond to lest she turn to stone too. Unlike them, she stuffs her ears with cotton and manages to make the journey. She finds all of the magical objects and restores her brothers and all the other men who were turned to stone on their journey. Once they return home, the Talking Bird tells Periezade how to convince the sultan that she and her brothers are his true children.

One Thousand and One Nights is a collection of Middle Eastern folktales compiled in the Arabic language during the Islamic Golden Age. It is often known in English as the Arabian Nights, from the first English-language edition. The work was collected over many centuries by various authors, translators, and scholars across West Asia, Central Asia, South Asia, and North Africa. Some tales trace their roots back to ancient and medieval Arabic, Sanskrit, Persian, and Mesopotamian literature. Most tales, however, were originally folk stories from the Abbasid and Mamluk eras. Common to all the editions of the Nights is the framing device of the story of the ruler Shahryar being narrated the tales by his wife Scheherazade, with one tale told over each night of storytelling. The stories proceed from this original tale; some are framed within other tales, while some are self-contained. Some editions contain only a few hundred nights of storytelling, while others include 1001 or more.

Because of the age of these posters, there are areas of wear and tear, particularly on the edges. I have done my best to take photos where they are torn or stained. The good news is that when framed, the tears press up well against glass, and edges can be hidden by mats. Any wear picked up from years are part of the vintage charm.

When framed these colourful and detailed posters, with vibrant colours can become a centre piece for any room, to remind us of a simpler time.

These posters are sent as unframed. They will be delivered in a cardboard tube for protection.

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