شاهنامۀ فردوسی

Partial copy of the Book of Kings (Shāhnāma) by Abū al-Qāsim Firdausī (d. 1020)

1590

10

Upper cover - Flap

1590-1600

Approved Material 2018/Organic/Plant (material)/Plant fibre/Paper (material); Approved Material 2018/Materials/Coating material/Ink (material); Approved Material 2018/Materials/Colourant (material)/Pigment (material); Approved Material 2018/Inorganic/Metal (material)/Non-ferrous metal/Gold; Approved Material 2018/Organic/Animal (material)/Leather (material)

Paper (material); Ink (material); Pigment (material); Gold; Leather (material)

Zayn al-`Abidin al-Tabrizi

1590

Zayn al-`Abidin al-Tabrizi; Unknown

Zayn al-`Abidin al-Tabrizi; Unknown

Chester Beatty Library

Nasta'liq script

2023

Approved Place 2018/Middle East/Iran/Qazvin

Partial copy of the Book of Kings (Shāhnāma) by Abū al-Qāsim Firdausī (d. 1020). Together with twelve detached folios also in the Chester Beatty collection, this codex forms only part of the original manuscript, produced at the Safavid court in Iran, in the late sixteenth century. The rest of the codex is now lost, including the final folio which would usually include a colophon statement about the patron, calligrapher's name, place of production and date. Nonetheless, the illuminator has signed the elaborate title panel on fol.1v: at the centre of the green border frame is written the name Zayn al-`Abidin al-Tabrizi. This artist was noted in Qadi Ahmad's 1596-1606 record of court calligrapher and painters, as a specialist in gilding, painting and portraiture, who worked in the shah's workshop (kar-khana) all his life. This documentation, and the distinction of the remaining folios as a whole, allow us to fix the manuscript to the reign of Safavid Shah `Abbas I (r.1587-1629), and his early court in Qazvin, c. 1590. Over eighty years later, a different phase of work was done on the same manuscript, with spectacular new paintings added by the court painter Muhammad Zaman in 1675-6. Codex, ink, colours and gold on paper, 10 folios, Persian text in nasta`liq script, with illuminated title heading (sarlawh, fol. 1v) and text rubrics throughout, four paintings (fols. 8r, 10r, 18v, 20r), and gold-painted borders throughout, partial copy of the Book of Kings (Shāhnāma) by Abū al-Qāsim Firdausi (d. 1020), initial sarlawh illumination signed Zayn al-`Abidīn al-Tabrīzī, manuscript attributed to the early reign of Safavid Shah `Abbās I (r.1587-1629), Qazvin or Isfahan, Iran, undated, c. 1590-1600.

Manuscript

Partial copy of the Book of Kings (Shāhnāma) by Abū al-Qāsim Firdausī (d. 1020)

Per 277

412 mm x 267 mm x 8 mm (height x width x depth)

1590; 1600

Approved Category 2017/Manuscript/Codex

GOOD

Codex

Zayn al-`Abidin al-Tabrizi; Unknown

mailto:photographicservices@cbl.ie

Chester Beatty Library

Unknown

Persian (language)

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