Rostam_and_Sohrab_from_the_Windsor_Shahnameh

The Windsor ''Shahnameh'' or ''Shahnameh'' of Qarajaghay Khan ( fa, شاهنامه قرچغای خان) is an illustrated manuscript of the ''

Shahnameh The ''Shahnameh'' or ''Shahnama'' ( fa, شاهنامه, Šāhnāme, lit=The Book of Kings, ) is a long epic poem written by the Persian poet Ferdowsi between c. 977 and 1010 CE and is the national epic of Greater Iran. Consisting of some 50,00 ...

'', the

national epic A national epic is an epic poem or a literary work of epic scope which seeks or is believed to capture and express the essence or spirit of a particular nation—not necessarily a nation state, but at least an ethnic or linguistic group with as ...

Greater Iran Greater Iran ( fa, ایران بزرگ, translit=Irān-e Bozorg) refers to a region covering parts of Western Asia, Central Asia, South Asia, Xinjiang, and the Caucasus, where both Culture of Iran, Iranian culture and Iranian langua ...

. It is one of the most famous manuscripts of the ''Shahnameh'', dating from 1648. The painters are Muhammad Qasim and Muhammad Yusuf. The miniatures of this ''Shahnameh'' are very similar to the miniatures of the ''Shahnameh'' of Rashida, and therefore it has been suggested that these manuscripts have been prepared by the same painters. The Windsor ''Shahnameh'' contains 148 or 149 miniatures and is written in

Nastaʿlīq script ''Nastaliq'' (; fa, , ), also romanized as ''Nastaʿlīq'', is one of the main calligraphic hands used to write the Perso-Arabic script in the Persian and Urdu languages, often used also for Ottoman Turkish poetry, rarely for Arabic. ''Nasta ...

Mohammad Hakim Hosseini Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the monothe ...

to the order of

Qarachaqay Khan Qarachaqay Khan ( fa, قرچغای خان; died 1625) was a military commander in Safavid Iran of Armenian origin. He was known for his great collection of porcelain items and loyal service to Shah Abbas I. Qarachaqay Khan was killed while comma ...

(one of the commanders-in-chief of

Abbas I of Persia Abbas I ( fa, ; 27 January 157119 January 1629), commonly known as Abbas the Great (), was the 5th Safavid dynasty, Safavid Shah (king) of Safavid Iran, Iran, and is generally considered one of the greatest rulers of Iranian history and the Safavi ...

). It is in very good condition compared to other manuscripts of the ''Shahnameh''. It is not clear how and when this version of the ''Shahnameh'' was acquired by

Ahmad Shah Durrani Ahmad Shāh Durrānī ( ps, احمد شاه دراني; prs, احمد شاه درانی), also known as Ahmad Shāh Abdālī (), was the founder of the Durrani Empire and is regarded as the founder of the modern Afghanistan. In July 1747, Ahm ...

and subsequently his heir, Kamran Shah. In 1839, the Windsor ''Shahnameh'' was presented to

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

by Kamran Shah, for her support of the Afghans against the

Qajar dynasty The Qajar dynasty (; fa, دودمان قاجار ', az, Qacarlar ) was an IranianAbbas Amanat, ''The Pivot of the Universe: Nasir Al-Din Shah Qajar and the Iranian Monarchy, 1831–1896'', I. B. Tauris, pp 2–3 royal dynasty of Turkic peoples ...

. The manuscript is now in the

Royal Collection The Royal Collection of the British royal family is the largest private art collection in the world. Spread among 13 occupied and historic royal residences in the United Kingdom, the collection is owned by King Charles III and overseen by the ...

and usually in the library at

Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a royal residence at Windsor in the English county of Berkshire. It is strongly associated with the English and succeeding British royal family, and embodies almost a millennium of architectural history. The original cast ...

Miniatures

File:Simurgh returns Zal to his father Sam.png , The

Simurgh Simurgh (; fa, سیمرغ, also spelled ''simorgh, simorg'', ''simurg'', ''simoorg, simorq'' or ''simourv'') is a benevolent, mythical bird in Persian mythology and literature. It is sometimes equated with other mythological birds such as the ...

returns

Zāl use both this parameter and , birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) --> , death_place = , death_cause = , body_discovered = , resting_place = , resting_place_coordinates ...

to his father Sam
Unsigned. f.38r File:Death of Rostam.png , The death of

Rostam use both this parameter and , birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) --> , death_place = Kabulistan , death_cause = With the conspiracy of his half-brother Shaghad, he fell into a wel ...

f.310v File:Romance of Khusraw Parviz and Shirin.png , In his youth

Khusraw Parviz Khosrow II (spelled Chosroes II in classical sources; pal, 𐭧𐭥𐭮𐭫𐭥𐭣𐭩, Husrō), also known as Khosrow Parviz (New Persian: , "Khosrow the Victorious"), is considered to be the last great Sasanian king (shah) of Iran, ruling fr ...

had loved Shirin but gave her up on becoming king. Meeting years later, he fell in love with her again and married her.
f.510v

References

External links

www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk

The ''Shahnamah'' 1648
{{Shahnameh Manuscripts of Shahnameh Books of the Royal Collection of the United Kingdom