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Illustrations in a 13th-14th century Red Ground copy of

The Shahnama
in The Diez Albums

MS Diez A Fol. 71.



S. 7, Nr. 1: Ein Herrscher attackiert einen fliehenden Feind mit der Lanze
p. 7, No. 1: A ruler attacks a fleeing enemy with a lance


S. 7, Nr. 2: Die Geburt von Rustam
p. 7, No. 2: The birth of Rustam


S. 42, Nr. 3: Suhrāb wirft Hağīr vom Pferd
p. 42, No. 3: Suhrab throws Hujir from his horse


S. 42, Nr. 2: Suhrāb entreißt Gordāfarīd den Helm
p. 42, No. 2: Suhrab snatches Gurdafarid's helmet


S. 7, Nr. 3: Suhrāb in Begleitung von Hağīr auf der Suche nach seinem Vater Rustam
p. 7, No. 3: Suhrab accompanied by Hajir in search of his father Rustam


S. 30, Nr. 2: Die Feuerprobe des Siyāwuš
p. 30, No. 2: The fire ordeal of Siyavush


S. 29, Nr. 2: Farūd tötet Rīwnīz vor seiner Bergfestung Qal'a
p. 29, No. 2: Farud kills Rivniz in front of his mountain fortress Qal'a


S. 41, Nr. 2: Rustam und Aškabūs zielen mit Pfeilen aufeinander
p. 41, No. 2: Rustam kills Ashkabus and his horse (Rustam wears a tiger skin)


S. 41, Nr. 1: Rustam zieht Kāmūs Kāšānī mit einem Lasso vom Pferd
p. 41, No. 1: Rustam pulls Kamus-i Kashani from his horse with a lasso


S. 6, Nr. 4: Rustam verfolgt Čingiš
p. 6, No. 4: Rustam overturns Chingish by seizing the tail of his horse


S. 11, Nr. 1: Rustam stößt Šangul vom Pferd
p. 11, No. 1: Rustam pushes Shangul off his horse


S. 45, Nr. 3: Rustam ringt mit Pūlādwand
p. 45, No. 3: Rustam wrestles with Puladvand


S. 40, Nr. 2: Kai Ḫusrau und Rustam stürmen die Festung Gang Diž
p. 40, No. 2: Kay Khusrau and Rustam storm the Gang Dizh fortress


S. 42, Nr. 1: Vier kämpfende Reiter
p. 42, No. 1: Four fighting riders
Images from a "Red Ground" Shahnama collected in MS Diez A Fol. 71, Staatsbibliothek Berlin, Orientabteilung.


Paintings removed from their original context as illustrative cycles of Shahnama manuscripts can be divided into several groups on the basis of style. Ipsiroglu's groupings seem to be correct, although they probably could be refined. The majority of these paintings — dating to various times in the fourteenth century — can be related to paintings mounted in album H. 2153. One small group of late-thirteenth-century paintings, however, has no equivalents in H.2153.47 The compositions are contained within a horizontal rectangular format, and also distinguished by the use of a bright, orange-red pigment for the ground.

47. Ms. Diez A. fol. 71, p. 7. nos. 1-3; p. 11, nos. 1-2; p. 29, no. 2; p. 30, no. 2; p. 41, nos. 1-3; and p. 42, nos. 1-3. Ipsiroglu gives these paintings a Seljuq-Mongol attribution and many are illustrated in his descriptive catalogue.
Source: "Heinrich Friedrich Von Diez and His Eponymous Albums: Mss. Diez a. Fols. 70-74" by David J. Roxburgh, pp. 112-136 in Muqarnas, Vol. 12 (1995)


Possibly from this Shahnama Unidentified Scene and Text Fragment from a Shahnama (Book of Kings) ca. 1330–40. MMA 2003.330.6
See also Illustrations from a 14th Century Shahnama, copied in Tabriz, Iran, in Codex Hazine 2153, Topkapi Sarai Museum.
Illustrations of Injuids of Fars in a Red-Ground Shahnama of 1341, Shiraz.
Other Illustrations of Ilkhanid Mongols and Successors in 14th Century Persia and surrounds

Persian Illustrations of Costume & Soldiers
Index of Illustrations of Costume & Soldiers