With sixty hand-painted miniatures of horses

[Farasnama]. Farasnama [Book of Horses].

€ 18,500.00

An Indian manuscript copy of a celebrated treatise on horsemanship, the "Farasnama" ("The Coloured Book of Horses"). Constituting a Persian translation of the Sanskrit "Salihotra", its topics include horse-breeding, grazing, dressage, veterinary advice and horseracing.

The "Salihotra" is attributed to Durgarasi, son of Surgarasi, who is believed to have composed it for Mahmud Ghaznavi (d. 1030). Traditionally, credit fro the translation is given to 'Abdullah bin Safi, who was active under the reign of the Bahmanid ruler Ahmad Shah Wali (d. 1436), though other translators are attested.

Interestingly, this copy is partly bilingual, with an introductory page in Urdu, and occasional explanatory notes in Urdu throughout the text. It is near complete, lacking only a few leaves after the Urdu introduction.

This work was copied by the scribe Muhammad Rida, and the manuscript contains sixty hand-drawn and carefully coloured drawings of thoroughbred horses, along with observations on their salient traits, the illnesses to which they are prone, and prescriptions for their treatment. These paintings are quite detailed, with both equine medical issues and breed traits quite clear, even to a layman.