The Shahnama of Shah Tahmasp is a Persian epic poem written by Ferdowsi that narrates the history of the ancient kings of Iran123. It is also known as the “Book of Kings” and is the national epic of Greater Iran2. The poem consists of 50,000 rhyming couplets and covers the mythical beginnings to the Arab conquest in 651 A.D.12. It is a mixture of mythology and history, similar to other works such as the Book of Kings or the Iliad3. It was created by two generations of the most renowned early-16th-century artists at the royal atelier in Tabriz, the first capital of the Safavid dynasty. Characterized by calligraphy, painting, and illuminations of exquisite quality and artistic originality, the volume is considered one of the highest achievements in the arts of the book. After its creation, the Shahnama of Shah Tahmasp traveled through several royal collections until it was broken up and dispersed in the 20th century. Now, for the first time, all 258 illuminated pages of this famous volume are reproduced in color and close to their original size in this sumptuous publication. Around 1524, the Safavid ruler Shah Tahmasp (reigned 1524–76) commissioned an illustrated manuscript of the Shahnama. He recruited the most talented painters, calligraphers, illuminators, and binders to work in the royal workshop and spared no expense. The workshop in the Safavid capital of Tabriz produced the 759 folios of text in elegant nasta'liq script. Its 258 innovative and sumptuous illustrations far surpass those of any other royal Iranian manuscript in both number and quality. An undertaking of this scale and scope could only have been financially supported by a ruler; this Shahnama reflects the great wealth and sophistication of Shah Tahmasp's Safavid court. This commission can be interpreted as an act of legitimization, linking Tahmasp's dynasty to the legendary kings of Persia. The completed manuscript was part of an opulent gift to Sultan Selim II (reigned 1566–74) on the occasion of his ascension to the Ottoman throne in 1566. The arrival of the Iranian embassy in Istanbul (in present-day Turkey) is well documented, and a number of gifts—this Shahnama among them—are mentioned in Ottoman and European sources. The manuscript remained well preserved in Ottoman hands before appearing in Europe in the nineteenth century. Its folios were later dispersed among museums and private collections. ISBN: 978-1-58839-436-1