Jalayirid Book Patronage and the Dissemination of Occultist Knowledge: The Case of Abū Maʻshar’s Kitāb al-mawālīd
Online lecture by Dr. Francesca Leoni | Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, UK
The 9th century intellectual Abū Maʻshar al-Balkhi (d. 886) is considered one of the most influential astrologers both across the Islamic world and in Europe, with followers and interpreters amongst the likes of Albert the Great, Roger Bacon and Pico della Mirandola. An exceptional synthesis of Pahlavi, Sanskrit and Syriac philosophical, astronomical and theurgical traditions, Abū Maʻshar’s arguments also build on Aristotelian emanationist theories as expounded in contemporaneous Harranian Sabean writings, proving essential for the development of astral magic and talismanic theurgy. This paper explores some of these ideas and their reach through a close analysis of two late 14th century fragments of Abū Maʻshar’s Kitāb al-mawālīd (‘Book of Nativities’) linked to the patronage of Sultan Aḥmad Jalayir (r. 1382-1410). As these represent the earliest illustrated versions of the Kitāb al-mawālīd, particular attention will be given to their pictorial programmes and the ways in which images articulate and communicate knowledge. The paper will also consider the inclusion of both fragments in majmu‘a, that is, anthologies of texts, and draw parallels with the princely compilations of occultist knowledge in early 15th century Timurid Iran in order to reflect on the growing importance accorded to the ‘ulūm al-gharība in royal circles.
This lecture is the fourth of a Webinar series organised by the NoMansLand research project (FWF Y 1232) dedicated to the study of Islamic manuscripts in pre-modern Iran and Central Asia.
Convenor: Project team "Nomads' Manuscripts Landscape"
For a list of coming lectures in the webinar series, please see Webinar series "Pre-modern Islamic manuscripts"