Kholāsat al-tavārikh


Kholāsat al-tavārikh, also Ḫulāṣat at-tawārīḫ or Kholassat ot-Tavarikh is a history of the early Safavid Empire, written by Ahmad Monshi Ghomi. The last events recorded in the manuscript date to 1592 suggesting a completion date shortly after this date. The copy of the manuscript located in Berlin contains 436 pages on the history of the Safavids from their origins, especially from Ismail I, up to the first years of the reign of Abbas the Great.

Copies

Various copies are known, including:
  • Manuscript B, located in Teheran, completed according to the colophon in 1640.
  • Manuscript M, located in Teheran in the Kitäbhänä-yimilli-yi Malik.
  • Manuscript N, located in Teheran, dated around 1651.

Manuscript S (SSB 2202)

Located in the Berlin State Library, number: 2202. The name of the copyist and the date of the copy are not given, but it is dated to circa 1695. The cover size is 41.5 x 28 cm. The manuscript has 436 leaves and is paginated with black pencil numbers by a European hand. The volume contains a total of ten miniatures, mostly full-page, each precisely matching the content of the text. The tenth miniature, however, is located at the very end of the manuscript, which depicts a reception scene at the court of an Indian prince, unlike the other miniatures, has no connection with the existing text. This manuscript is fully digitized and available online.