Iskandar visits the Ka‘ba in Mecca, from the Book of Kings (Shahnama) by Firdausi

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Iskandar visits the Ka‘ba in Mecca, from the Book of Kings (Shahnama) by Firdausi. Firdausi's epic Book of Kings was composed c. 1010, and tells in Persian verse the mythical histories of fifty kings and queens from ancient pre-Islamic Iran. The stories blend historical figures and events with dramatic legend, featuring superhuman heroes, supernatural monsters and kings of variable quality. Depicted here is an episode from the reign of Iskandar, or Alexander the Great. Firdausi describes how Iskandar conquers Iran and India, and then pauses to make a pilgrimage to the Ka`ba shrine in Mecca, before proceeding to Egypt. In Mecca he meets the descendants of the prophet Ibhraim (Abraham). Detached folio, ink, colours and gold on paper, Persian poetry in nasta`liq script, caption in gold ("Iskandar goes to the Ka`ba") and painting (on recto), text copied by Muhammad Baqqal, dated 23 Jumada I 885H, Shiraz, Iran, 31 July 1480.