Illuminating the Manuscript Leaves:
Persian Poetry, A leaf from the Khamsah of Nizami
Iran, mid 19th century

• Poetry is an art language which uses particular forms and conventions to expand the literal meaning of words, or to evoke emotional or sensual responses. Early Persian poetry glorified the history of Persia, now known as Iran, in epic form, telling long, heroic stories to preserve a sense of identity for the Iranian people over the ages. Beginning in the thirteenth century, the ghazal or lyrical love poem became a celebrated form. The appreciation for poetry spread into other disciplines, so that science and other types of scholarship also sometimes were written in verse. Over centuries and still in modern day Iran reciting or reading poetry aloud within a group of friends is a popular activity.
  
  
• Calligraphy is the art of beautiful writing which originated from China. Calligraphy ranges from functional, hand written work to fine art pieces incorporating text and design. Persian calligraphy has always been one of the most revered arts throughout the centuries of Persian history. Artists in the Muslim world occupied a variety of social positions but all were considered professionals, having been trained from childhood in their craft. Some artists belonged to families where generations of fathers and sons practiced the same trade. The ultimate sign of success for an Islamic artist was to work in the royal workshop producing books and art work for a shah (equivalent to a European king).
  
  
• Often Persian poetry, such as in this leaf, was composed to resemble a garden. In Muslim culture the language used to describe books and written texts often compares them to beautiful gardens. For example, the bindings are described as garden walls that provide shade and protect fruit trees. The text and illustrations are composed to resemble flower beds holding clusters of different blossoms. Just as gardens can provide a retreat from an arid climate and stressful life, so a beautiful book can provide respite and pleasure through its beauty.
  
  
• Nizami is considered the greatest romantic epic poet in Persian literature because he wrote in an everyday and realistic style. He was born in 1141 and died in 1209. He lived in the town of Ganja, Azerbaijan, which is located in southwest Asia located between Iran and Russia. Nizami was orphaned at a young age and grew up in a time of political instability. Nizami's life time also was a period of intense intellectual activity when art and science both were prized. Nizami wrote the Khamsah or Quintuplet, which is a pentalogy or group of five poems, in masnavi or rhymed couplets verse form. The Khamsah includes 30,000 couplets.
  
  

Additional Web Resources

Avdoyan, Levon and Beverly Gray. "The Iranian World." Library of Congress Near East Collections: An Illustrated Guide. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress, 2003. http://www.loc.gov/rr/amed/guide/nes-iranianworld.html (accessed August 21, 2007).

Huseynov, Javid. "Nizami Gunjavi - the great poet of Azerbaijan." Odlar Yurdu - Azerbaijani History Pages. Irvine, Calif.: Azerbaijan Society of America, 2000. http://www.ics.uci.edu/~javid/azerbaijan/nizami.html (accessed August 21, 2007).

Yale University Library Near East Collection. "Samples of Arabic and Persian Calligraphy." New Haven, Conn.: Yale University, 2003. http://www.library.yale.edu/neareast/calig/caligraphy1.htm (accessed August 21, 2007).