Mika Natif Synopsis: This talk examines seven paintings of Moses featured in Rashid al-Din’s Arabic copy of his World History, the Jami‘ al-Tawarikh. These images portray Moses, or Musa in Arabic, as both supreme ruler and prophet-king, an ideal figure whom Rashid al-Din may have sought to emulate. Through their connections to diverse visual and…
Tag: EUL Manuscripts and Rare Books
Rashid al-Din and the Compendium of Chronicles
Jonathan Brack and Stefan Kamola Synopsis: Rashid al-Din, known as the “Doctor from Hamadan,” was one of the most prominent personalities of the period of Mongol rule in Iran, from the mid-thirteenth through the early fourteenth century. In addition to his political responsibilities as the advisor and minister to a generation of Mongol rulers, he…
The Bryce Miniature Qur’an and Its Travels Across the Globe
Mira Xenia Schwerda Synopsis: This talk focuses on a miniature Qur’an executed in golden ink and housed in a metal locket, now held in the collection of the Centre for Research Collections at the University of Edinburgh. This Qur’an may look like a manuscript, but it is an early printed book. It reproduces a handwritten,…