Special Display: The Shahnameh, “The Book of Kings”

A selection of miniature illustrations from the Shahnameh (“the book of kings”) from the collection of Islamic art and archaeology department.

The Shahnameh is a historic epic, written in Persian, telling the history of the Iranian kingdom from the time of creation until the Kingdom’s conquest by the Arabs in the 7th century CE. It was composed in the 11th century by the poet Firdusi, based on a collection of ancient poems, and is considered one of the greatest works of poetry in world literature. The Shahnameh was copied many times over the centuries and illustrated with countless miniatures. The earliest existing ones date from the 14th century.

רוּסתַם מציל את בִּיז'אן מן הבור איור מתוך שאה-נאמה, צויר בידי מועין מוצוור, איספהן, איראן, צבעי מים אטומים על נייר, עיזבון יוחנן בן דוד, לונדון, B69.0625