The Illustrative Program in Fragards 10–11 of Wīdēwdād (MS. 4000)

A small number of Avestan manuscripts with an illuminative component are known. Among the illustrated Iranian documents, there are manuscripts containing simple and small illustrative motifs included into the text. The article focuses on the analysis of illustrations of fragards 10 and 11 of Wīdēwdād in ms. 4000 (University of Tehran No. 11263). This document is the oldest Iranian liturgical manuscript with illustrations and dates to 1607/1627. According to the author, the main reason for the appearance of these textual illustrations at this time was the cultural life during the Safavid Dynasty (1501–1722). Its reign was characterized as a revival of the old Iranian traditions when Iranian artists had more freedom to paint humans and animals, flowers and plants on decorative carpets and tiles. The types of illustrations in ms. 4000 are considered in the article. The author draws attention to the pictorial motif known as “Lady Sun” (Khorshid Khanum), which was used as a decorative element on carpets and Bakhtiari talismans that were hanging on the walls on weddings and to protect against the “evil eye”. The iconography of the “Lady Sun” and the image of the “female guise” from among the illustrations of fragards 10 and 11 of Wīdēwdād in ms. 4000 have many similar features. Probably this suggests common iconographic roots of these motifs, which reflect certain aspects of Iranian culture associated with apotropaic ideas.