A COMMEMORATIVE LIMITED EDITION OF THE IMPERIAL SHAHNAMEH OF FERDOWSI
Tehran, Pahlavi Iran, 1971

A limited edition of 1000 printed copies, published to coincide with the commemorative celebration of the 2500th anniversary of the Founding of the Persian Empire, Persian print on heavy cream paper, 1056 numbered pages, each folio with 32 double lines in paired frames, within scrolling borders of foliage, birds, and mythical beasts, containing 10 reproduced and polychrome-painted miniatures, with profusely illuminated preface, introductions, and title pages, the fine kitabat nasta’liq script by the calligrapher Javad Sharifi (b. 1911), the miniatures by Mohammad Bahrami (b. 1926), published by Amir Kabir publishing house, hardback binding, endpapers, and the dust jacket with Persian scrolling and strapwork design, the secondary dust jacket with a band of imperial turquoise blue emblazoned with the seal of the 2500th Anniversary of the Founding of Persian Empire, including the Cyrus Cylinder beneath the Imperial Pahlavi coat of arms, in a protective cardboard box, 38.5cm x 30.5cm x 8cm.

The cultural significance of the Shahnameh in Persian life cannot be exaggerated. Ubiquitous in every home, and present in every mind, the epic traverses and unites age, class, and creed. Often deemed the clear expression of the nation’s soul, it has played symbolic and representational roles in history. Just as the Safavid Shah Tahmasp chose a magnificent illuminated manuscript of the text as his gift to his Ottoman rival Selim II in the late 16th century, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi chose this edition of The Book of Kings as a fitting tribute to the world dignitaries who gathered to celebrate the consolidation of his rule. Few copies were available to Iran’s book lovers after the celebrations of 1971 and were snapped up as mementos of an idealised realm preserved in the pages of this book.

The revolution took a dim view of Amir Kabir publishing house’s association with the imperial commission through this book - and its founder, Abdul Rahim Ja’fari’s investiture by the Pahlavi Empress. The independence and professionalism of the publisher, however, are evident in his dating of the tome in the Hijri Shamsi year (1350), in defiance of the royal edict to use only the new imperial date (2535). Abdul Rahim and his son Reza were both imprisoned for a number of years, and the revolutionaries confiscated the publishing house. Once freed, the family launched the new publishing house ‘Nashr-e Nou’ (New Edition).