The ''Safine-ye Solaymani'' ("Ship of Solayman") is a

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

travel account of an embassy sent to the

Siam Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 mi ...

ese

Ayutthaya Kingdom The Ayutthaya Kingdom (; th, อยุธยา, , IAST: or , ) was a Siamese kingdom that existed in Southeast Asia from 1351 to 1767, centered around the city of Ayutthaya, in Siam, or present-day Thailand. The Ayutthaya Kingdom is conside ...

in 1685 by Suleiman I (1666–1694), King (''

Shah Shah (; fa, شاه, , ) is a royal title that was historically used by the leading figures of Iranian monarchies.Yarshater, EhsaPersia or Iran, Persian or Farsi, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII no. 1 (1989) It was also used by a variety of ...

'') of

Safavid Iran Safavid Iran or Safavid Persia (), also referred to as the Safavid Empire, '. was one of the greatest Iranian empires after the 7th-century Muslim conquest of Persia, which was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often conside ...

. The text was written by Mohammad Rabi ibn Mohammad Ebrahim, the secretary of the embassy. The text provides excellent information on Iran's historical and cultural presence in the eastern

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...

region. It also gives many details about Siam's late seventeenth century Iranian community. It is the only extant Persian source for the rich history of Safavid contacts with this particular region of the world.

Translations

* (An English translation of the ''Safine-ye Solaymani'' based on a manuscript housed at the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

. Contains notes and an introduction by the translator)

Sources

* * * Persian literature Safavid Iran 17th century in the Ayutthaya Kingdom Iran–Thailand relations Travel books Historiography of Thailand {{Thailand-stub