ISKANDER MEETS THE ANGEL ISRAFIL

“ISKANDER MEETS THE ANGEL ISRAFIL” 

First half of the XV century. Herat school.

The miniature is executed for the “Shahnameh” of Abu’l-Qasim Ferdowsi. 

This work is a facsimile copy of the miniature from the manuscript kept in the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art in Turkiye.

The masterpiece of Persian literature, “Shahnameh” (“The Book of Kings”), was written by the Persian poet Abu’l-Qasim Ferdowsi in the early XI century. Created within 35 years (976-1011), the poem consists of almost sixty thousand couplets (bayts), its volume is twice as much as “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey” combined. Ferdowsi included in the poem a thousand couplets written by his predecessor Dakiki, who died in his youth and couldn’t manage to complete his work. Covering the lives of fifty monarchs the “Shahnameh” is conventionally divided into three parts – mythological, heroic and historical and includes the history of Iran from ancient times to the penetration of Islam in the VII century. The poem is written entirely in Persian at a time when Arabic was the primary language of science and literature. Thus, Ferdowsi contributed to the flourishing and spread of the Persian language in the world.

The miniature illuminates the plot of “Shahnameh” and is located between the text fields of the book page.

According to the plot of the “Shahnameh” chapter, dedicated to the reign of Alexander the Great, Shah Iskander, at the behest of the Green Bird, climbs to the peak of the mountain alone, unaccompanied by his soldiers. There, as the Green Bird told the King would see something that would make any happy man weep.

At the top of the mountain, a conversation takes place between Israfil, the angel of death, and Iskander. The angel urges the shah to forget worldly desires and wealth and be ready for the call of the Almighty.

In the upper left corner of the miniature is the angel Israfil, who is about to blow his trumpet. There are two orange wings on Israfil’s back, in his left hand he holds a 7-belled trumpet. The long-haired angel, dressed in a pale purple robe, is wearing a golden headdress on his head. Scattered Chinese stylized clouds are visible around the figure of Israfil.

On the right side of the miniature, on one of the summits of the rocky gray-white mountain chain, Iskander is depicted sitting in a thoughtful pose, raising the index finger of his right hand to his mouth. He is dressed in a light emerald-colored robe, with a white turban on his head.

The background of the composition is blue, which indicates the nighttime, and symbolizes the sadness of the hero listening to the instructions of the messenger of the Last Judgment, and the tension of the ongoing event. In the lower right corner, a bay horse is depicted.

There is text at the top and bottom of the book miniature.

КК-628. INV-180