Alexander mourns the death of the Persian king, Darius III, Folio from a manuscript of Nigaristan

• Accession Number:AKM272.f157r
• Creator:Author: Ahmad b. Muhammad Ghaffari, Persian, died 1567 Scribe: Ahmad al-Shirazi
• Place:Iran, Shiraz (probably)
• Dimensions:38.7 cm × 25 cm × 6.4 cm
• Date:1573-74 CE/980 AH/AH 980
• Materials and Technique: Ink, opaque watercolour, and gold on paper

• The miniature painting "Alexander mourns the death of the Persian king, Darius III" is from an intact manuscript of Kitab-i Nigaristan, a collection of anecdotes and historical incidents written in prose by the historian and scholar Ahmad Muhammad Ghaffari (1504–1567/68) of Kashan in 1551–2. This illustrated manuscript, dated 1573, was probably produced in a Shiraz workshop.  

   

  See AKM272 for more information about the manuscript and links to the other illustrations. 

    

Further Reading 
 
The miniature can be categorized as a battle scene, and it depicts the dramatic moment where one warrior has lost the battle and has fallen down. The image is divided into three parts. The main scene takes place in the middle part of the image. The upper part is covered by another rocky landscape, which, similar to most rocky landscapes in the Nigaristan, is coloured violet. Along the middle axis and between the two text boxes, a tree with a cut trunk adds to the harshness of the landscape and creates a fitting backdrop to the action. Attention is focused on the figure lying on the ground. 
 
According to the text, the fallen warrior is Darius III, who ruled until 330 BC. Darius III was the last Achaemenian King and the last Persian king of the pre-Islamic Era. The text tells of the deathblow he is given by his own entourage as he flees from Alexander the Great. Alexander hurries to Darius and lays the dying man's head in his lap. As he does so, Darius warns Alexander about the vicissitudes of earthly happiness. 
 
- Elika Palenzona-Djalili