Shahnameh

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Abolquasem Ferdowsiand The Shahnameh
"The Funeral of Isfandiyar," leaf from the Great
Mongol Shahnamah, ca. 1330s, Iran (probably
Tabriz). Purchase, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, 1933
(Metropolitan Museum of Art)
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The Persians
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Map of the Persian Empire
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Gate of All Nations
PersepolisCity of the Persians
http//www.persepolis3d.com/
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Persian Immortals the Royal Guards of Darius
Paris, Musée du Louvre
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• The Parthians

Parthian city of Hatra
Parthian prince
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Sassanid Persia
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Ferdowsi in the garden with other poets
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• The Shahnameh
• epic history of the Persian people
• begins with creation of the world
• ends with the Arab conquest
• mixes myth and fact
• marks the preservation and re-emergence of the
  Persian language and Persian heritage.

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Ruins of the Sassanid citadel at Tus
Mausoleum of Ferdowsi
Tus (or Tous) Birthplace of Ferdowsi
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Ghazni today
Yesterday the Kingdom of Rostam
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Ghazni Afghanistan in the 19th century
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Goshtasp throws Esfandiyar in chains
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Esfandiyar battles the dragon
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Esfandiyar battles the dragon 2
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Esfandiyar kills the witch
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Esfandiyar kills Arsjap and frees his sisters
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Rostam fights Esfandiyar
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Rostam fights Esfandiyar
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The great warrior Rostam
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In the Dragons Claws
Written in the 11th Century Set in the 6th
Century (or slightly before) A nostalgic look
back at the glorious past . . .

• While you read, think about
• cultural definitions of right action vs. wrong
  action
• political obligations vs. personal honor
• family relationships
• the divine right of kings
• what it means to be a good king
• should we preserve cultural history?