Iraq: A ruler, his bodyguards and the common folk. Miniature painting by Yahya ibn Mahmud al-Wasiti, 1237 CE. Yahyâ ibn Mahmûd al-Wâsitî was a 13th-century Arab Islamic artist. Al-Wasiti was born in Wasit in southern Iraq. He was noted for his illustrations of the Maqam of al-Hariri. Maqāma (literally 'assemblies') are an (originally) Arabic literary genre of rhymed prose with intervals of poetry in which rhetorical extravagance is conspicuous. The 10th century author Badī' al-Zaman al-Hamadhāni is said to have invented the form, which was extended by al-Hariri of Basra in the next century.

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Size: 3500px × 4965px
Photo credit: © Pictures From History / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

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