Nizami Ganjavi. Khusrow o Shirin [The Romance of Khosrow and Shirin].

€ 12.500,00

One of the greatest Persian Romances by the most famous romantic epic poet of Persian literature, Nizami Ganjavi (1141-1209 CE), decorated with gold and illustrated with 10 miniatures depicting the dramatic moments of the tale, from romantic meetings to attempted murders.

Ganjavi, a native of the Seljuq empire city Ganja (now Ganca, Azerbaijan), wrote several epics, each leaving its own indelible mark on Persian literature. Of these, few have had the incredible impact of "Khusrow o Shirin". Drawing on the "Shanameh" (considered the Iranian national epic) and earlier Parthian myth, Ganjavi's "Khusrow o Shirin" is a highly fictionalized story of the Sasanian King Khosrow II and the Christian Shirin, heavily featuring Khosrow's rival in love, Farhad. The latter became so popular that a tradition of telling the story "Khusrow o Shirin" as a tragedy between Farhad and Shirin continues to this day.

The ten miniatures illustrating this manuscript are done in a playful and bright Kashmiri style. They show theatrical moments of reunion, death, hunting, and court life.