بررسي موضوعي نسخه خطي احسن الكبار، شاهكار نگارگري مذهبي دوره صفويه

A Review: The Contents of the Manuscript Ahsan al-Kobar, a masterpiece of Religious paintings in the Safavid period

One of the cohesive styles in Persian painting is the school of Qazvin and Isfahan of the Safavid period. Groups of painting in this school are directly related to Islamic religion, the stories and the legends, an indication of variety and religious freedom of that period in the Persian history. Religion was factually one of the most obvious and clear influential elements on the Safavid paintings. The Safavid taste in art was in direct connection with elements of religious quality and nature. In this period, the Islamic canonic teachings, which are considered as the most significant and sensitive subjects for interpreting religious problems, developed significantly. The political and historical situations of this period, and, most importantly, the elements of religious symbolism are quite evident in the paintingsof this period, and these paintings(USj\5L;) are perfect reflectors of their social and religious conditions. However, apart from historical and social perspectives, much of Persian painting aesthetic principles and standards were established in this school. One of the religious illustrated manuscripts of the Safavid time is Ahsan al-Kobar, abridged in the order of Shah Tahmasb I, consists of 17 paintings describing the important Islamic events, such as Ghadir Khom; Battle of Jamal; peace treaty between Imam Hassan and Moʹaviyya; etc. The paintings in this manuscript arc generally under the influence of the two styles of Qazvin and Esfahan. This manuscript is preserved in the library of Golcslan Palace (^liJ^^LS"). Focusing on the subject matter, technique, and style, the present paper tries to review the contents of ten paintings in Ahsan al-Kobar.