War between the Mongol ruler Abaqa and Buraq, Folio from a manuscript of Nigaristan

• Accession Number:AKM272.f218v
• 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 "War between the Mongol ruler Abaqa and Buraq" 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 landscape depicted in this miniature is divided diagonally by two groups of riders facing each other. The border between the two is emphasized by different colours within the steppe landscape. The right group is illustrated on a purple background; the left group on a beige one. The border between both troops is marked by a tree in the upper right corner of the painting.  
 
Soldiers on the right are wearing helmets, and their steeds are covered in protective armour. A crowned figure on a brown horse is among the opposing group, wearing turbans. The text clarifies that the crowned person is Abaqa, a Mongol ruler, who captures three spies of Buraq, a Central Asian prince of Khurasan and Transoxania. Abaqa executes two of the spies, but uses the third to trick Buraq into thinking the Mongol forces are now active on another front. Buraq therefore decides to penetrate further into Ilkhanid territory, and is confronted by Abaqa’s massive army. This is the moment conveyed in the miniature painting, which precedes Buraq’s defeat at the hands of Abaqa. 
 
Battle scenes are among the favourite scenes depicted in miniature paintings. Typically, they present a setting where two mounted heroes face each other while their troops are behind them and on two opposing sides of the illustration. 
 
- Elika Palenzona-Djalili 
 
 
References 
Sims, Eleanor. Peerless Images: Persian Painting and Its Sources. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2002. ISBN: 9780300090383