The Ascension (Mi'raj) of the Prophet Muhammad, from The Cream of Histories (Zubdat al-tawarikh) by Sayyid Luqman-i 'Ashuri

Sun'i

The Ascension (Mi'raj) of the Prophet Muhammad, folio from The Cream of Histories (Zubdat al-tawarikh) by Sayyid Luqman-i 'Ashuri. Detached folio, ink, pigments and gold on paper, full-painting, one of twelve folios detached from codex T 414, Istanbul, Turkey, c. 1585-1590. Painting: the Prophet Muhammad riding his steed Buraq, flying with angels over the Ka`ba sanctuary in Mecca. Composed by Ottoman court historian Sayyid Luqman-i `Ashuri, this is an extensive survey of Islamic history, compiled from many earlier sources. According to the preface, Luqman commissioned the painter Sun'i to illustrate his text, and presented the finished work to Habeshi Mehmed Agha (d.1590), head of the Topkapi Palace eunuchs. The text begins by reviewing the cosmos, describing heaven, hell and the regions of the earth, before presenting a survey of Islam's prophets from Adam to the Prophet Muhammad, and then of subsequent dynasties of rulers up to the Ottomans themselves, concluding with Murad III (d.1595).