The Shah Tahmasp Album from the Istanbul University Library

About the Talk

“Shāh Ṭahmāsp Album” is a set of illustrated calligraphic works dating from the mid-14th to the mid-16th centuries compiled from various sources during the reign of the Safavid ruler Shah Tahmasp (r. 1524-1576). It was conveyed to the Ottoman State during the 16th century and preserved in Ottoman palaces until it was placed in the Library of Istanbul University at the beginning of the 20th century. It is commonly believed that the album was among the diplomatic gifts sent by Shah Tahmasp to Sultan Murad III (r. 1574-1595). The texts written in Persian, Arabic or Chagatai Turkish are related to various fields of knowledge. They include poetry, samples of calligraphy, model texts, and continuous works displayed in several folios. The album had drawn specialists’ interest especially for its miniatures, some of which were taken from illustrated copies of well-known texts existing at the time. The present book, authored by Lâle Uluç and Bora Keskiner, focuses essentially on calligraphy which contributes to understanding the purpose and significance of its compilation. Based on comparisons with other calligraphic works from the same centuries located in Istanbul libraries, it examines the scripts, compositions, and provenance of the texts, traces the influences of eminent calligraphers and artistic characteristics of the Safavid period, and in the process, supplies a lot of information to the researchers concerned.

About the Speaker

Lâle Uluç completed her PhD at the Institute of Fine Arts, New York University and has taught at Boğaziçi University. Her research focuses on Persian and Ottoman arts of the book and material culture. Her publications include various articles including “Selling to the Court: Late Sixteenth Century Shiraz Manuscripts,” Muqarnas 17 (2000); “Shiraz Manuscripts during the Time of Shah ‘Abbas I,” in The Arts of Iran in Istanbul and Anatolia (2018); and “The Perusal of the Topkapı Albums: A Story of Connoisseurship,” in The Diez Albums (2016). She has also authored books including Turkman Governors, Shiraz Artisans and Ottoman Collectors: Sixteenth Century Shiraz manuscripts (2006), Impressions of Ottoman Culture in Europe (with Nurhan Atasoy) (2013); Illustrated Copies of the Works of ‘Ali Shir Nava’i in Istanbul Libraries (2020); Ottoman Safavid Relations in the Sixteenth Century and the Importance of the Nakkaşhane (2022); The Shah Tahmasp Album from the Ottoman Royal Treasury (with Bora Keskiner) (2024); and an edited book From the Yıldız Palace to the Istanbul University (2015).

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