Number 13 | January-March 2012 | BUY THE MAGAZINE

Shahnama, Book of Kings

Over 50,000 verses and hundreds of handwritten sheets tell us the stories of the legendary pre-Islamic Iran kingdoms. The 'Shahnama', with its rich details, presents a contemporary worldview iljaní and involves the transformation of a popular text in a splendid visual document of the time. The Metropolitan Museum of New York displays it in its renovated rooms of Islamic Art.

By Sheila R. Canby
This article is only avalaible in the print edition | BUY THE MAGAZINE