Others and Other Geographies in the Şehnāme-i Selīm Ĥān

Abstract

This article examines the depiction of various “others” (Venetians, Safa- vids, Tunisians, Yemenis, and Ethiopians), and other geographies (Yemen, Tunisia, Cyprus) in the Şehnāme-i Selīm Ĥān. Through a close examination of paintings, it argues  that  these  representations  reflect  the  imperial  ideologies  and  political  con- cerns that inform the manuscript as a whole. It further demonstrates that as is true of many early-modern depictions, the markers of ethnic identity in this period were costumes and customs rather than physical features.