Counsels for Alexander (Nasayih Iskandar) by pseudo-Aristotle

Description:: Counsels for Alexander (Nasayih Iskandar) by pseudo-Aristotle. Codex, ink, gold and pigment on paper, Arabic text in ta`liq script, signed by Ja`far al-Baysunghuri, Herat, Afghanistan, dated 829H, 1425-1426. This is an abbreviated version of the pseudo-Aristotelian 'Politics', known as in Arabic as Sirr al-Asrar (Secret of Secrets): the text is presented in the form of letters written by Aristotle to his pupil, Alexander the Great, while Alexander was engaged in the conquest of Iran. Produced in Herat for the Timurid prince Baysunghur (d. 1433), the manuscript belongs to an important category of wisdom literature, designed to educate princes in statecraft and political vision. This is one of at least three manuscripts in the Chester Beatty collection known to be produced in Baysunghur's renowned court atelier.

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