Kings and Heroes, Lovers and Poets: the Shahnameh’s continuous appeal

With Charles Melville & Ina Sarikhani Sandmann

The Shahnameh, or Book of Kings, is arguably Iran’s most famous work of literature and one of the world’s greatest epic poems. It recounts tales of legendary kings and heroes, compiled from more ancient legends and was completed by Ferdowsi (d.1020) over a thousand years ago, yet it still has an enduring appeal to Iranians, and non-Iranians, around the world. Both the poetry and the way the text was illustrated, and the aspirations, deeds and failures of the characters, influenced later writers and artists. Join us as Ina Sarikhani Sandmann and Prof. Charles Melville take a look at why that is.

About the speakers:

Charles Melville has been the President of the British Institute of Persian Studies since 2018 and is a member of the IHF’s Academic Committee. He is Emeritus Professor of Persian History, Emeritus Fellow of Pembroke College and Founding Director since 1999 of the Shahnama Project. His main research interests are in the history and historiography of Iran in the Mongol to Safavid periods and Persian manuscript culture. His current research project is on the illustration of history in Persian manuscripts.

Ina Sarikhani Sandmann is the Director and co-Founder of the Sarikhani Collection, and a Trustee of the Iran Heritage Foundation. She has studied at Cambridge, SOAS, and the Courtauld Institute of Art. Ina is currently the Associate Curator for the upcoming exhibition Epic Iran, which has been organised by the V&A with the IHF, in association with The Sarikhani Collection.

Please register in advance for this webinar using the button. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email with a link to join the webinar.

More information on the IHF’s website.

On the left: Qaran Unhorses Barman, a folio from the Shahnameh of Shah Tahmasp, about 1523–35. I.MS.4025. Photo © The Sarikhani Collection