Persian Book Illustration Tradition

Timeline

1. 900–1050Baghdad · IraqUnder Abbasid court and bookseller patronage, manuscript illustrations were used in works such as the Maqamat and Kalila wa Dimna, forming an early paradigm incorporating figures, animals, and ornamental patterns into page borders and full-page compositions.
2. 1131–1140Isfahan and Baghdad · IranIn the 1130s under Seljuk Sultanate patronage, the Isfahan and Baghdad book workshops supplied illustrations for epic, astronomical, and medical manuscripts; painters formed a cooperative workshop system with divided labor, and illustration style tended toward flatness and decorative unity.
3. 1250–1350Tabriz · East Azerbaijan ProvinceThe Ilkhanate court fused the earlier book illustration tradition with Mongol and Chinese visual elements, laying the technical and thematic foundations for the Tabriz school and later Timurid and Safavid miniature painting.