The Shahnameh in Print The Lithographed Editions of the Persian ...

The Shahnameh in PrintThe Lithographed Editions of the Persian National EpicUlrich Marzolph Since the time of its compilation, the Shahnameh for many centuries had exclusivelybeen produced in manuscript copies, many of which were adorned with magnificentillustrations. It was only at the beginning of the nineteenth century that printedcopies of the Shahnameh were published. The new dimension of publishing the textof the Persian national epic in print was primarily due to the effort of Britishcolonialist scholars in India. Matthew Lumsden (1777–1835), professor of Arabicand Persian at the College of Fort William and one of the most prolific Europeanscholars of Persian of his day, started a projected complete edition of Firdausi’s epicpoem in eight volumes, but only managed to publish the first volume in 1811. Thefirst complete edition of the Shahnameh was achieved by Major Turner Macan, wholater earned fame for bringing the manuscript of the Thousand and One Nights toIndia that served as the basis of this work’s subsequent edition by William HayMacnaghten. In 1829 Macan’s edition of the Shahnameh was published in fourvolumes in Calcutta. Besides this editio princeps, other nineteenth century editionswere published by Jules Mohl (Paris, 1838–1878) and Johann August Vullers(Leiden, 1877–1879). Meanwhile, the vast majority of the Shahnameh’s earlyeditions were produced in India and Iran by way of lithography.The Printing of Books in India and IranIn India, as in Iran, the art of printing as a permanent cultural practice was onlyestablished in the early decades of the nineteenth century. Printing from movabletype (typography) had been the first technique to be introduced. Having been usedby the Orientalist printing houses in India and elsewhere for some time, thistechnique, however, did not yield satisfactory results and was only successfultowards the end of the nineteenth century. Meanwhile, towards the end of theeighteenth century, Prague citizen Alois Senefelder had invented the process oflithographic print. This technique soon became extremely popular in India and Iran, Enzyklopädie des Mrchens Göttingen Universität

10The SubcontinentEssaysince it permitted the production of printed items with relatively simple technicalmeans and at comparatively low cost. In the process of printing Persian books byway of lithography, the item to be printed – whether text, illumination, or illustration– was first prepared on a sheet of special transfer paper to which the special ink usedwould not stick. The original copy was then used to print a negative image onto thesurface of the lithographic stone. After the stone had been treated with a weakaquafortis, the printing ink would only stick to those places that had previously beentouched by the writing ink. In this manner, a number of some 300 to 400 copiescould be printed from any original before the surface of the only existing negativeimage would wear out. The vast majority of items printed in the Persian script inIndia, Iran, and Middle Asia were produced by way of lithography.Similar to fifteenth century incunabula in Europe, the lithographic printing ofPersian texts at first resulted in the production of books whose formal conceptionand layout were more or less identical to those of manuscript tradition. Incomparison to items printed from movable type, lithography had the particularadvantage of allowing calligraphers, illuminators and illustrators to work on the verysame surface. As a result, the books printed by way of lithography were comparablein layout and appearance to the previous manuscripts.Western scholars have traditionally regarded the lithographed editions of classicalPersian texts with a certain disdain. In their opinion, these editions did not stand upto the criteria of critical scholarship. At best, they would be regarded as another“manuscript” version. Theodor Nöldeke is one of the few scholars ever to discussthe lithographed editions of the Shahnameh in some detail. Even though he judgesthese editions to be of comparatively little value for the purpose of textual critique,he admitted that their publishers had taken considerable effort and care in theirproduction.The First Printed Editions of the ShahnamehIn terms of text, the lithographed editions of the Shahnameh closely follow TurnerMacan’s editio princeps. A certain amount of variation may or may not result fromeither lacking care on the part of the calligraphers or from conscious editorialdecisions. Meanwhile, when evaluating the lithographed editions, one has to keep inmind that the audience and, hence, the general editorial decisions of “Western” and“Oriental” editors differed widely. Western scholars preparing the Shahnameh’scritical editions took great care to establish a text that would aim be as close aspossible to the presumed original while identifying later textual interference. The“Oriental” editors addressed the local audience of Indian and Iranian readers forwhom the Shahnameh constituted a highly admired work of classical literature. Forthem, the Shahnameh was part of their traditional heritage and of cultural idenity.The “Oriental” readers, then, were not so much concerned with the critical substanceof the text. For them, the possession of a personal copy of the Shahnameh had beena matter of honor and pride for long, yet most of them would not have had thematerial means to afford commissioning a handwritten copy of the work or buyingan already existing one. The printed editions for the first time in history made the

The SubcontinentEssay11personal possession of the Shahnameh affordable. The “Oriental” readers would bequite satisfied, so long as the work contained more or less what they would expect itto contain in terms of text. Of great importance to them was, however, the work’sphysical presentation and appearance. This criterion applied first of all to anappealing calligraphy of the Persian nasta’liq script, as documented, for instance, bythe fact that the 1855 Indian edition written by the famous calligrapher Auliya’Sami‘ al-Shirazi was reprinted in offset technique several times. Moreover, the“Oriental” audience was well aware of the magnificent illustrated manuscripts of theShahnameh that had been produced for wealthy patrons in the course of history.Consequently, it was also a matter of cause that the work’s lithographed editionsshould be adorned by illustrations and graphic illumination. In this manner, thelithographed editions of the Shahnameh are works of art. In comparison with themagnificent products of the Timurid and Safavid eras with their splendid calligraphyand their overwhelming miniatures, the lithographed Shahnamehs are probably notintricate pieces of “great” art. On the contrary, as for their artistic quality, they arefairly modest, and particularly the more recent Indian editions show signs of lackingcare. The modest artistic quality of Persian lithographed illustrations should,however, by no means justify their disregard. Persian lithographed books offer thecharming simplicity of an art that, given its production in hundreds of copies,derives its significance from the fact that it was at least a little closer to the commonpeople than elite art serving the privileged. This social aspect might in the long runcontribute to an adequate understanding of the art of the Persian book in the Qajarera.The Lithographed Editions of the ShahnamehThe exact number of lithographed editions of the Shahnameh remains unknown.According to the available bibliographical data, and starting with the editionBombay 1846, probably some 30 lithographed Oriental editions of the Shahnamehwere published, most of them in Indian cities such as Bombay, Lucknow, andCawnpore. Only five lithographed editions of the Shahnameh were published in Iranin a period extending over half a century (1851 up to 1904) in Tehran and Tabriz.Contrasting with this moderate production is the number of some 25 Indian editionsof the Shahnameh that were published in the period of seventy years extending fromabout 1850 to 1920. The reason for this considerable difference in numbers ofeditions remain obscure. Economical factors, such as the price of paper or the feesfor the employees involved in the printing process, must have played a certain rolein determining the number of editions produced. Notably, the Indian editions did notonly, and maybe not even primarily, aim to satisfy local demand, since a substantialamount of Persian books of Indian production were exported to Iran. One evenmight have to consider the vital importance the Shahnameh possessed for the Parsicommunities in India in relating their current position to the glorious past of thecountry they once had originated from. This assumption is corroborated by theimage illustrating the scene in which Zoroaster founds the religion of Zoroastrianismby handing over the sacred fire. Quite understandably, this illustration is rarely

12The SubcontinentEssaycontained in the Shahnameh manuscripts that were produced at the order of the greatMoslem rulers. Meanwhile, it forms part of the standard repertoire of all the work’slithographed editions, notably both the Indian and the Iranian ones. The later Indianeditions came to be of an increasingly modest quality both in terms of physicalappearance and care invested into the production of the text as well as theillustrations. The last lithographed edition of the Shahnameh prepared in India isprobably the edition published in Cawnpore in 1919.The first lithographed edition of the Shahnameh contains a set of 57 illustrations.Similar to other illustrated works of Persian literature, this number of prints set thestandard for all of the lithographed editions to follow. Most of the later illustrationseither constitute relatively faithful copies of the earlier items or are at least inspiredby their model; only rarely were new illustrations inserted into the repertoire. Froman artistic point of view, the lithographed editions of the Shahnameh produced inIndia display a peculiar character. This peculiar character relates to both calligraphyand illustration. The calligraphy applied is usually a well-written nasta’liq thatdocuments the professional background of the calligraphers, mostly mention theirname. The only calligrapher enjoying some renown is the one known as Ouliya’Sami’, who prepared the calligraphy for the editions of Bombay 1272/1855 and1276/1859. Particularly, in the more recent editions, the calligraphy betrays thecharacteristics of Indian nasta’liq style that is somewhat less smooth and flowingthan the style practiced in Iran.As for the illustrations, most of the artists who prepared them remain unknown. Thefew illustrators known by name are ‘Ali Akbar (Bombay 1266/1849), SeyyedMohammad Mirza Kazem al-Hoseini al-Shirazi (Bombay 1276/1859), and Vazir‘Ali and Qasem ‘Ali Mosavver (Cawnpore 1290/1874). Both of the two earlyeditions (Bombay 1262/1846 and 1266/1849) betray a fairly crude and simple stylethat is somewhat reminiscent of the Kashmiri style of manuscript illumination. Theillustrations of the later editions are not devoid of a certain attraction in terms ofcomposition and diligence of execution. A typical characteristic of the Indianillustrations is the indication of landscape by parallel lines. It is interesting to notethat the two early Indian editions apparently founded two different iconographicalschools. The first and the second Iranian edition follow the iconographical programof the first Indian edition while the third and fourth Iranian edition take the secondIndian edition as their model. Meanwhile, one has to keep in mind that it is notjustified to draw a clear line of distinction between the “Indian” and the “Iranian”editions. After all, a large number of the editors, calligraphers, and artistscollaborating in the publication of Persian texts in India were of Persian, often ofShirazi, origin. Besides, a certain quantity of books of Indian production wasundoubtedly produced for Iranian customers. The extent of this internationalcooperation, its mechanisms and consequences remain to be studied. At any rate,India was and remained the major production site for the lithographed editions of thePersian national epic.

The SubcontinentEssay13A Listing of Lithographed Indian Editions of the Shahnameh1. 1262/1846 Bombay; size 21.5 x 31.5 cm, written space 14.5 x 24 cm, 4 columns,27 lines; calligraphy by Reza al-Hosaini al-Shirazi; 57 illustrations by ananonymous artist; published by Mohammad Mahdi Esfahani2. 1266/1849 Bombay; size 19.5 x 29 cm, written space 14.2 x 23.9 cm, 4 columns,27 lines; calligraphy by Reza ibn Ahmad al-Hosaini al-Shirazi; 57 illustrationsby ‘Ali Akbar; published by Mohammad Baqer Shirazi3. 1270/1853 Bombay; calligraphy by Aqa Baba4. 1272/1855 Bombay (photomechanical reprint Bombay 1331/1913); size 25.5 x35.5 cm, written space 19.5 x 30 cm, 6 columns, 33 lines; calligraphy byMohammad Ebrahim ibn Mohammad Hosain Khan Ouliya’ Sami‘ al-Shirazi; 58illustrations by Mohammad ibn Mirza Kazem al-Hosaini al-Shirazi; piblished byMohammad-Baqer Shirazi5. 1274/1857 Cawnpore6. 1274–75/1857–58 Bombay; size 38.5 x 25.5 cm, written space 19.5 x 32 cm, 6columns, 37 lines; calligraphy by ‘Abdalkarim ibn Mohammad Ebrahim al-Tabataba’i al-Esfahani al-Ardestani, Mohammad ibn ‘Abdallah al-Shirazi;published by Mohammad Sadeq Shirazi7. 1275–76/1858–59 Bombay; size 21 x 31 cm, written space 16.5 x 27.5 cm, 6columns, 37 lines; calligraphy by ‘Abd al-Karim ibn Mohammad Ebrahim al-Tabataba’i al-Esfahani al-Ardestani, Mirza Mohammad Reza ibn AqaMohammad Hosain Shirazi; published by Mirza Baqer ibn Mirza KuchekShirazi8. 1275/1858 Bombay; calligraphy by Mirza Mohammad ibn Mirza ‘Ali TabibShahid-e Shirazi9. 1276/1859 Bombay; size 22.5 x 33 cm, written space 16.5 x 26 cm, 6 columns,32 lines; calligraphy by Mohammad Ebrahim ibn Mohammad-Hosain KhanOuliya’ Sami‘; 56 illustrations by Mohammad ibn Mirza Kazem al-Hoseini al-Shirazi10. 1279/1862 India11. 1284/1867 Lucknow12. 1287/1870 Lucknow; size 26.5 x 41 cm, written space 22 x 36 cm, 6 columns,37 lines; calligraphy by Janki Parshad; publisher Newal Kishor13. 1290/1874 Cawnpore14. 1291/1875 Cawnpore15. 1298–1300/1881–1883 Bombay; calligraphy by Mirza ‘Ali-Khan al-Fasavi;publisher Heidari

14The SubcontinentEssay16. 1301/1884 Lucknow; size 30 x 19.5 cm; publisher Newal Kishor17. 1306–1308/1888–1890 Bombay; size 23 x 32 cm, written space 18 x 27.5 cm, 6columns, 37 lines; calligraphy by Seyyid Nazem-Hosein Razavi Muhani;published by Qazi ‘Abd al-Karim ibn Qazi Nur-Mohammad, Qazi Fath-Mohammad; publisher Fath al-Karim18. 1308–1315/1890–1898 Bombay; size 24.5 x 33 cm, written space 18.5 x 28 cm,6 columns, 37 lines; calligraphy by Mir Baraqani Mortaza al-Hosaini, ‘Ali-Rezaibn Abu l-Hasan ibn Mirza Aqa; published by Aqa Mirza EbrahimShirazi;publisher Naderi19. 1314/1897 Cawnpore; size 31.5 cm; publisher Newal Kishor20. 1315/1898 Bombay; publisher A’ine-ye Khorshid21. 1321/1903 Bombay22. 1326/1909 Cawnpore; size 21 x 32.5 cm; publisher Newal Kishor23. 1338/1919 CawnporeBibliography Marzolph, Ulrich, Narrative Illustration in Persian Lithographed Books, Leiden, 2001. Marzolph, Ulrich, “Illustrated Persian Lithographic Editions of the Shahnameh”,Edebiyat, 13,2 (2002) 177–198. Nöldeke, Theodor, “Das iranische Nationalepos”, Grundriß der iranischen Philologie,vol. 2. ed. by Wilhelm Geiger and Ernst Kuhn. Strassburg, 1986–1904, pp. 130–211. Scheglova, Olimpiada P, “Lithograph versions of Persian manuscripts of Indian manufacturein the nineteenth century”, Manuscripta Orientalia, 5,1 (1999) 12–22. Van Zutphen, Marjolijn, “Lithographed Editions of Frdaws’s Shhnam: AComparative Study. In: Oriens, 37 (2009) 65–101..1390 1385 .1384--