Shahnama Project : Shahnama

Firdausi

Shahnama Project

<p style='text-align: justify;'><p>Formerly Ethé 868. A Tipu Sultan ms. in fine and probably original of black leather with sunk gilt panels and floral medallions. Doublures are dark red with fine gold filligree over blue and green.The ms. is superbly illuminated with a double title page (ff. 1v-2r), a double illuminated page at the start of the Baysunghuri prose preface (ff. 2v-3r), and ff. 332v-333r have illuminated headings and decorated margins (for the start of the reign of Luhrasp). The colophon on f. 622r has been painted over with gold.The text of the poem begins on f. 10v. The ms. contains 28 miniatures of the Isfahan style of c. 1630-40, closely modelled on the work of Riza-yi 'Abbasi. Robinson considers it possible that the best of them might be done by the young Mu'in. The choice of subject is generally restricted to the most popular scenes, but there are two or three very uncommon ones (ff. 57v, 138v, 421v). The ms. includes the text of the Barzunama (inserted as usual, after the story of Bizhan and Manizha), and one of the paintings (f. 233v) is from the Barzunama. (Ch.M.).BibliographyH. Ethé, Persian manuscripts in the India Office Library, London, 1903, p. 550 (no. 868)B.W. Robinson, Persian paintings in the India Office Library, London, 1976, pp. 212-15 (with references)</p></p>