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Painters are often inclined to illustrate different themes derived from literary texts. But when a painter illustrates a story with the theme of a painter’s artistry and artifice, this illustration certainly becomes more intriguing. Considering the common interests between the subject and the object, the major question for the painter is what particular techniques should be undertaken for illustration of this theme. This article examines the techniques in illustrations of a story with the theme of a painter’s artistry. The objects of this study are two illustrations by Mirak from the story of “Shapur-e naghash” in Nezami’s Khosrow va Shirin. The aim of this paper is to present the functions of specific illustration techniques and also to highlight the relation between these techniques and the theme of the story

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A Study of the Textual Potentialities of Maqamat al- Hariri in its Manuscripts' Illustrations Certain Arabic classical manuscripts were accompanied by illustrations to contribute to more objectively representing them. To do so, illustrators, by taking advantage of the pictorial potentialities of literary manuscripts, attempted to depict them in a more concrete manner. As such potentialities vary, the aforementioned manner(s) would differ, accordingly. The present paper makes an analogy between the narrative elements of Maqamat al- Hariri and the technical features of the illustrations. Our main question is thus, whether Maqama , with its peculiar stylistic features, calls for a specific type of illustration, and, further, how these features could influence the type of the illustrations. In answering the question, having made the analogy, we come to two major categories in the illustrations: 1. similar drawings for different maqamas 2. Dissimilar drawings for different maqamas. The result of the research reveals a peculiar style of illustration in Maqamat al- Hariri which can be introduced as the genre's pattern of depiction. Key words: Maqamat al- Hariri, illustration, miniature, Maqama, illustrated manuscripts

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Folk tales were made popular among people in Qajar era. The advent of lithography in this period contributed greatly to the dissemination and expansion of these stories, especially the illustrated lithographs that made stories more visually appealing to people. The story of the Noosh Afarin GoharTaj is a proverbial folk tale from the Qajar period which depicts Prince Abraham's love, King of China's son, for Prince GoharTaj who is the Prince of Damascus. The author and timing of this folk tale are unknown. However, numerous lithographs of GoharTaj's story show its popularity. Given the importance of this story for the public, the present study examines one of the most important lithographs of this story, the first one, dated back to 1847 and kept at the Lynch National Academy in Rome. This edition is illustrated by two illustrations by the most prominent illustrator of lithography books, Mirza Ali Gholi Khoi in 57 paintings. This study examines the popular story and the importance of lithography in promoting this story. The main part of the article is devoted to analyzing the illustrations of this edition from the perspective of iconography, demonstrating imaginary and mythical creatures, and drawing scenes of martial arts and martyrdom. The results of the research show that the illustrator has been trying to portray the paintings in a way that is popular and appropriate to the needs of his age.
 

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Alamut Castle is one of the most important Ismaili castles. In the previous studies, mainly historical sources have been referred but pictorial sources, especially paintings, have not been paid much attention. This paper intends to examine the location of Alamut and show how these images can be used to rebuild the castle. Reconstruction of Alamut Castle, whether in the form of a digital image or in a higher step in practice, requires various supports, one of which is the drawings of historical texts, because it provides an image of the castle before it was destroyed and its grandeur shattered. In an attempt to find this embodiment, this study examines the drawings of three ancient historical texts, namely Jahangisha, Genghisnameh, and Jame al-Tawarikh.