The Shahnameh in Painting

The Shahnameh, or "Book of Kings", is the Persian national epic that the poet Ferdowsi, a landowner from Tus in north-eastern Iran, finished on 8 March 1010 after work that began in 977, according to the Encyclopaedia Iranica. It tells the history of Iran's kings from mythical beginnings to the Arab conquest in 651, and the Encyclopaedia Iranica says it holds "pride of place" among the texts Persian painters illustrated. Stories painted again and again include the tragedy of Rostam and his son Sohrab, the prince Siyavash riding through fire, the serpent-shouldered tyrant Zahhak, the Simorgh raising the child Zal, and Rostam's seven labours.

This page summarises those stories in plain English, with a museum source for each, and lists the great illustrated copies and where their pages are today. It ends with the painters who take their subjects from the Shahnameh now, including two in our own gallery. It is part of our guide to contemporary Iranian and Persian painting.

Key takeaways

• The Encyclopaedia Iranica dates the completion of the Shahnameh to 8 March 1010, when Ferdowsi was in his seventy-first year.
• The Encyclopaedia Iranica says hundreds of illustrated copies of the Shahnameh survive, from the Mongol period into the modern era.
• The Great Mongol Shahnameh, made in Tabriz in c. 1335, may once have held as many as 180 illustrations, of which 57 or 58 survive, scattered among collections.
• The Shahnameh made for Shah Tahmasp has 258 paintings, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art owns 78 of its painted pages.
• Harvard Art Museums describes Siyavash's trial by fire: accused by his stepmother Sudabeh, he rode through a burning pyre and came out unharmed.

Ferdowsi and the poem

Almost nothing is certain about Ferdowsi's family. The Encyclopaedia Iranica entry by Djalal Khaleghi-Motlagh says he was one of the dehqans of Tus; the dehqans were the landed gentry who preserved Iran's old customs and national legends. The Iranica dates the start of the poem to 977. He finished it on 8 March 1010. The medieval writer Nezami Aruzi reported that Ferdowsi presented the poem to Sultan Mahmud of Ghazna and that the promised 60,000 dinars became 20,000 dirhams. The Iranica notes that other early sources also refer to the quarrel between poet and king.

The Met's essay on the Shah Tahmasp copy explains the structure. The poem's history unfolds in "fifty kingdoms" across three dynasties: the Pishdadians, the legendary first kings who founded civilisation; the Kayanids, the main actors in the long enmity with Turan; and the Sasanians, the last dynasty before Islam. The Met adds that "all kings who ruled Iran, both local and foreign, continued to commission the production of new copies of the epic, which were often lavishly illustrated". For the poem's size and the Shah Tahmasp manuscript in more detail, see our page on surrealism and Persian painting.

The best-known stories, in plain English

Zahhak, the king with snakes on his shoulders

The Aga Khan Museum's page for a Shahnameh painting made for Shah Ismail II tells the start of the story. Iblis, the devil, introduced the tyrant Zahhak to fine cooking, and as a reward Zahhak let him kiss his shoulders. Two black snakes grew from the spots and grew again when cut off. Iblis returned disguised as a physician and said only human brains would feed them. The Encyclopaedia Iranica describes the ending that appears most often on painted objects: the young hero Fereydun captures Zahhak and takes him to be imprisoned on Mount Damavand, sometimes with Kaveh and his leather banner beside him.

Zal and the Simorgh

The Encyclopaedia Iranica entry by Hanns-Peter Schmidt tells how the hero Sam abandoned his son Zal, born with white hair, in the Alborz mountains, believing the child demonic. The Simorgh, a giant mythical bird, found him while searching for food for her young, took him to her nest and raised him. When Sam came back for his son, she gave Zal one of her feathers: if he burned it, she would come to help. The Museum für Islamische Kunst in Berlin has owned a page from the Shah Tahmasp Shahnameh showing this scene since 1977.

Rostam's seven labours

The Haft Khan, or "seven stages", is Rostam's lone ride with his horse Rakhsh to rescue King Kay Kavus. The Encyclopaedia Iranica summarises it. In the first stage Rostam falls asleep and Rakhsh kills an attacking lion. In the second a wild ram guides him to water in the desert. He kills a dragon in the third and a witch who tempts him with a banquet in the fourth. In the last three he captures the local lord Ulad, kills the demon Arzhang and finally the White Div, and restores the king's sight by bathing his eyes in the Div's blood. The prince Esfandiyar has his own seven labours later in the poem.

Siyavash's trial by fire

Harvard Art Museums tells the story of Siyavash, son of King Kay Kavus. When Siyavash rebuffed his stepmother Sudabeh, she accused him of attacking her. After an inconclusive inquiry, the king asked both to undergo a trial by fire. Sudabeh refused. Siyavash rode his black horse through the burning pyre "and emerged ... unscathed and triumphant". Harvard notes that its two versions of the scene share the same elements, which points to an established way of painting the episode.

Rostam and Sohrab

Harvard's page for a double painting made in Shiraz between 1575 and 1590 tells the tragedy of Rostam and Sohrab. Rostam left his bride Tahmina before their son Sohrab was born. Years later the two met on the battlefield, Sohrab leading the army of Turan, and fought without knowing each other for three days. Only after Rostam had stabbed Sohrab was the young warrior's identity revealed. The painting shows Rostam kneeling by his dying son, whose coat is pulled back to show the amulet Rostam had given Tahmina, and then Rostam carrying the coffin alone.

Five Shahnameh stories and where to see a painting of each

Story	What happens	A painted example
Zahhak	A tyrant grows two snakes from his shoulders and feeds them human brains, until Fereydun overthrows him	Zahhak Consults the Physicians, Qazvin, c. 1576, Aga Khan Museum, Toronto
Zal and the Simorgh	A giant bird raises an abandoned white-haired child	Page from the Shah Tahmasp Shahnameh, Museum für Islamische Kunst, Berlin
The seven labours	Rostam, and later Esfandiyar, pass seven trials against beasts, witches and demons	Isfandiyar's Third Course: He Slays a Dragon, folio 434v, Shah Tahmasp Shahnameh, Metropolitan Museum of Art
Siyavash	A falsely accused prince rides through fire and is unharmed	The Trial by Fire of Siyavush, Shiraz, 1575 to 1590, Harvard Art Museums
Rostam and Sohrab	A father kills his son in single combat without knowing him	Rustam Mourns Sohrab and Carries His Coffin, Shiraz, 1575 to 1590, Harvard Art Museums

The great illustrated copies

The Encyclopaedia Iranica entry by Marianna Shreve Simpson says that among all the classical texts in Persian painting, the Shahnameh "occupies pride of place", with hundreds of illustrated volumes surviving. Among them are these.

• The Great Mongol Shahnameh, Tabriz, c. 1335. Harvard Art Museums says it is assumed to have been commissioned by a high-ranking member of the Ilkhanid court. The Iranica entry by Priscilla Soucek reports an estimate of 280 original folios and up to 180 illustrations, and says the Paris dealer Georges Demotte, who acquired the manuscript c. 1910, removed its binding and sold the pages separately. Harvard counts 57 surviving illustrations and the Iranica 58. Pages are at Harvard, the Met and the Smithsonian's Arthur M. Sackler Gallery.
• The Timurid princes' copies. Three grandsons of Timur each commissioned a Shahnameh: Baysonghor in Herat in January 1430, Ebrahim Soltan in Shiraz in c. 1430 to 1435, and Mohammad Juki in Herat in c. 1444. The Iranica says the three together hold only 99 illustrations.
• The "Big-Head Shahnameh", a two-volume copy made in 1493 to 1494 for a ruler of Gilan, which originally held more than 310 illustrations, many with over-sized heads, according to the Iranica.
• The Shah Tahmasp Shahnameh, begun in Tabriz in the early 1520s, with 258 paintings. It went to the Ottoman sultan Selim II as a gift in 1568 and is now dispersed. The Met owns 78 painted pages.
• The Shahnameh of Shah Ismail II, Qazvin, c. 1576, left unfinished. The Aga Khan Museum holds its Zahhak page.

How painters chose and staged the scenes

The Iranica says the scenes a patron chose could reflect that patron's concerns: Baysonghor's copy stresses royal responsibility and legitimate government, and Ebrahim Soltan's hunting, feasting and battle. It also notes that the Great Mongol Shahnameh is known for its depiction of grief, carried by the figures' gestures, and that the Shah Tahmasp copy shows all three stages of the fight between Rostam and Sohrab plus Rostam's funeral lament. Painters also told a story in one continuous picture. Kamal al-Din Ghotb's Siyavash painting, described below, shows the prince three times on one page, entering, crossing and leaving the fire.

The Shahnameh also left the court. The Iranica entry on coffeehouses says storytellers set up painted screens showing episodes such as "the tragedy of Rostam and Sohrab" and explained them to customers for money. Our page on coffeehouse painting in Iran tells that story. The creatures of the epic, above all the Simorgh, also became symbols in Persian poetry; see our page on symbols in Persian painting.

Painters who use the Shahnameh today

The Iranica records that the epic's millennium in 2010 brought many exhibitions, conferences and publications and "even inspired contemporary artistic production". The Middle East Institute's 2025 exhibition Maximal Miniatures showed several such works. Elham Pourkhani's Zahhak's Castle Is Calm of 2023 fills the tyrant's castle with skeletal figures. Farah Ossouli reworks battle scenes with women at their centre. Two untitled works on paper of 1989 by Farideh Lashai, the curator writes, portray Rudabeh, the mother of Rostam, as a protector and a witness.

Kamal al-Din Ghotb, Siyavash Passing Through the Fire

Kamal al-Din Ghotb paints in the classical miniature tradition, in oil and gold on paper. His Siyavash Passing Through the Fire, dated 2026 and 40 by 30 cm, takes the trial by fire as its subject. The product page describes the prince in white riding through a mountain of burning wood "the way the old manuscripts do", as the same rider three times over: entering at the left, crossing the fire with arms open and face lifted, and coming out at the right into a spring landscape. An illuminated arch of nastaliq verse rises over the scene. In the left margin, a drawing in shades of grey in the siyah-qalam manner (the term translates as "black pen") shows the cause of the ordeal: Kay Kavus enthroned with Sudabeh beside him and Siyavash standing alone before the throne. For the tradition he works in, see our page on Persian miniature painting.

Amir Fazelian, the Div series

The divs are the demons of the Shahnameh, among them the White Div that Rostam kills in his seventh labour. On his artist page, the gallery says Amir Fazelian "reimagines Persian mythology for the algorithmic age" and that his Div series turns these creatures into images of modern anxiety about data, surveillance and the self in digital systems. The page lists the Shahnameh among his inspirations. His The Thinking Monster (Div Andish) is in watercolour and ink on cardboard. Our article on Persian mythology in contemporary art has more on the series.

Frequently asked questions

When did Ferdowsi finish the Shahnameh?

Ferdowsi finished the Shahnameh on 8 March 1010, in his seventy-first year, according to the Encyclopaedia Iranica. The Iranica dates the start of the poem to 977, which makes more than thirty years of work. Ferdowsi belonged to the dehqans of Tus, the landed families who preserved Iran's old legends.

What happens in the story of Rostam and Sohrab?

In the story of Rostam and Sohrab, the hero Rostam fights his own son without knowing him. Harvard Art Museums explains that Rostam left his bride Tahmina before Sohrab's birth; years later they fought for three days, and only after Rostam stabbed Sohrab was his son's identity revealed. Harvard's painting shows the amulet Rostam had given Tahmina on Sohrab's arm.

Why did Siyavash ride through fire?

Siyavash rode through fire to prove his innocence after his stepmother Sudabeh falsely accused him of attacking her. Harvard Art Museums says King Kay Kavus asked both to undergo a trial by fire; Sudabeh refused, and Siyavash rode his black horse through the burning pyre and came out unharmed.

Who was Zahhak in the Shahnameh?

Zahhak was a tyrant king in the Shahnameh from whose shoulders two black snakes grew after the devil Iblis kissed them. The Aga Khan Museum says Iblis, disguised as a physician, told him only human brains would feed the snakes. The hero Fereydun later captured Zahhak and imprisoned him on Mount Damavand.

How did the Simorgh help Zal?

The Simorgh helped Zal by finding him abandoned in the Alborz mountains and raising him in her nest. The Encyclopaedia Iranica says his father Sam had left him because he was born with white hair. When Zal returned to his father, the Simorgh gave him a feather to burn if he needed her help.

What are Rostam's seven labours?

Rostam's seven labours, the Haft Khan, are the trials he passes riding alone with his horse Rakhsh to rescue King Kay Kavus. The Encyclopaedia Iranica lists a lion, a desert, a dragon, a witch, the capture of the lord Ulad, the demon Arzhang and the White Div, whose blood restores the king's sight.

Who is the White Div in the Shahnameh?

The White Div is the demon Rostam kills in the last of his seven labours, the main target of the whole quest. The Encyclopaedia Iranica says Rostam then bathes the eyes of the blinded King Kay Kavus in the Div's blood, restoring his sight. Divs are the demons of the Shahnameh.

What is the Great Mongol Shahnameh?

The Great Mongol Shahnameh is an illustrated copy of the epic made in Tabriz in c. 1335 for a patron at the Ilkhanid court. The Encyclopaedia Iranica reports an estimate of up to 180 original illustrations, of which 57 or 58 survive, dispersed after a Paris dealer removed the binding and sold the pages separately.

How many pages of the Shah Tahmasp Shahnameh does the Met own?

The Metropolitan Museum of Art owns 78 painted pages of the Shah Tahmasp Shahnameh. The manuscript, begun in Tabriz in the early 1520s, has 258 paintings. It was sent to the Ottoman sultan Selim II as a gift in 1568 and is now dispersed among public and private collections.

Which Timurid princes commissioned copies of the Shahnameh?

Three grandsons of Timur commissioned copies of the Shahnameh: Baysonghor in Herat in January 1430, Ebrahim Soltan in Shiraz in c. 1430 to 1435, and Mohammad Juki in Herat in c. 1444. The Encyclopaedia Iranica says the three manuscripts together contain only 99 illustrations, a restricted selection compared with the Ilkhanid and Muzaffarid copies.

Which contemporary artists paint Shahnameh stories?

Contemporary artists who paint Shahnameh stories include Elham Pourkhani, whose Zahhak's Castle Is Calm of 2023 was shown by the Middle East Institute, and Farah Ossouli, who reworks battle scenes. VanArtHub offers Kamal al-Din Ghotb's Siyavash painting and Amir Fazelian's Div series, which draws on the demons of the epic.

What does Kamal al-Din Ghotb's Siyavash painting show?

Kamal al-Din Ghotb's Siyavash Passing Through the Fire shows the prince three times on one page, entering, crossing and leaving the fire, the way old manuscripts told a story. The 2026 painting in oil and gold on paper measures 40 by 30 cm and adds an arch of nastaliq verse and a siyah-qalam court scene.

References

1. FERDOWSI, ABU'L-QASEM i. Life. Djalal Khaleghi-Motlagh, Encyclopaedia Iranica. Published 15 December 1999; Internet Archive copy of 10 September 2026. Accessed 26 September 2026. The start of the poem in 977, its completion on 8 March 1010, the dehqans of Tus, the account of Nezami Aruzi and the payment figures.
2. The Shahnama of Shah Tahmasp (Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History). Francesca Leoni, The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Published June 2008; Internet Archive copy of 25 December 2024. Accessed 26 September 2026. The end date of 651, the three dynasties, the royal habit of commissioning copies, the 258 paintings, the gift to Selim II in 1568, the Met's 78 pages and the title of folio 434v.
3. SHAH-NAMA ii. Illustrations (English: Book of Kings). Marianna Shreve Simpson, Encyclopaedia Iranica. Published 21 April 2009; Internet Archive copy of 25 August 2026. Accessed 26 September 2026. Hundreds of surviving illustrated copies, Fereydun and Zahhak, the Timurid copies, their patrons' concerns and their 99 illustrations, the Big-Head Shahnameh, the Rostam and Sohrab scenes in the Tahmasp copy, and the 2010 millennium.
4. DEMOTTE SHAH-NAMA (English: the Demotte Book of Kings). Priscilla P. Soucek, Encyclopaedia Iranica. Published 15 December 1994; Internet Archive copy of 21 September 2026. Accessed 26 September 2026. The estimate of 280 folios and 180 illustrations, Demotte's acquisition c. 1910 and dispersal of the pages, the depiction of grief, and the Sackler Gallery pages.
5. Bahram Gur Fights the Horned Wolf, illustrated folio from a manuscript of the Great Ilkhanid Shahnama. Harvard Art Museums. Undated. Accessed 26 September 2026. The Tabriz origin, the date of c. 1335, the assumed court patron and the 57 surviving illustrations.
6. HAFT KHAN (English: seven labours). Encyclopaedia Iranica. Published 15 December 2002; Internet Archive copy of 13 October 2025. Accessed 26 September 2026. The seven labours of Rostam and of Esfandiyar.
7. SIMORG (English: the Simorgh, a mythical bird). Hanns-Peter Schmidt, Encyclopaedia Iranica. Published 20 July 2002; Internet Archive copy of 13 September 2026. Accessed 26 September 2026. The story of Zal and the Simorgh and the feather.
8. A painting from the Shahnameh: The Persian Book of Kings. Museum für Islamische Kunst, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin. Published 2025. Accessed 26 September 2026. The Zal and Simorgh page from the Shah Tahmasp Shahnameh, in the collection since 1977.
9. Zahhak Consults the Physicians, Folio from the Book of Kings (Shahnameh) of Shah Ismail II, AKM71. Aga Khan Museum. Undated. Accessed 26 September 2026. The story of Zahhak's snakes and the unfinished Ismail II manuscript of c. 1576.
10. Double page: The Trial by Fire of Siyavush, left-hand side of a double-page painting from a manuscript of the Shahnama by Firdawsi. Harvard Art Museums. Undated. Accessed 26 September 2026. The story of Siyavush and Sudaba and the Shiraz date of 1575 to 1590.
11. The Trial by Fire of Siyavush, folio from a manuscript of the Shahnama by Firdawsi. Harvard Art Museums. Undated. Accessed 26 September 2026. The established way of painting the scene.
12. Rustam Mourns Sohrab and Carries His Coffin, folio from a manuscript of the Shahnama by Firdawsi. Harvard Art Museums. Undated. Accessed 26 September 2026. The story of Rostam and Sohrab and the Shiraz date of 1575 to 1590.
13. COFFEEHOUSE. Ali Al-e Dawud, Encyclopaedia Iranica. Published 15 December 1992; Internet Archive copy of 23 May 2025. Accessed 26 September 2026. Storytellers' painted screens showing the tragedy of Rostam and Sohrab.
14. Maximal Miniatures: A Contemporary Take on a Centuries-Old Persian Art Form. Donna Honarpisheh, Middle East Institute. Published 4 March 2025. Accessed 26 September 2026. The works of Elham Pourkhani, Farah Ossouli and Farideh Lashai.
15. Siyavash Passing Through the Fire: Original Persian Miniature in Oil and Gold by Kamal al-Din Ghotb. VanArtHub. Undated. Accessed 26 September 2026. The subject, composition, size, year and medium of the painting.
16. Amir Fazelian. VanArtHub. Undated. Accessed 26 September 2026. The gallery's description of the Div series and his inspirations.
17. The Thinking Monster (Div Andish): Original Watercolor and Ink on Cardboard by Amir Fazelian. VanArtHub. Undated. Accessed 26 September 2026. The medium of the painting.

Checked 26 September 2026. If something here is out of date, write to us and we will correct it.