Document Type : Original Article
Author
Ph.D. in Islamic Iranian History, Researcher in Safavid Studies, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran
Abstract
The life and works of Sādeqī Beyg Afshar—renowned Safavid artist, writer, poet, calligrapher, and painter—have attracted the attention of several scholars due to his significant role in shaping and advancing the cultural and artistic landscape of the Safavid era. Nevertheless, the limited range of sources consulted in previous studies, the predominant reliance on the incomplete and sometimes inaccurate account of Anthony Welch, and certain methodological biases in modern historiography have hindered a correct understanding of his personality and his literary, artistic, and cultural contributions. These shortcomings have also led to misinterpretations concerning aspects of the history of the Qizilbash and the Safavid period more broadly. Adopting a historical–analytical approach and drawing directly on Sādeqī’s own writings—including the preface to his Kulliyāt, his Persian and Turkic Inshā’, Qānūn al-Ṣuwar, Majmaʿ al-Khawāṣṣ, poems, and anecdotes—as well as other reliable contemporary sources, the present study seeks to provide a documented and comprehensive account of his life, identity, educational trajectory, and cultural position within the Safavid cultural sphere. Moreover, this study aims to reassess and correct several widely accepted but erroneous interpretations regarding Sādeqī himself, the cultural history of the Qizilbash, and the broader historical context of the Safavid era. The findings demonstrate that, contrary to the prevailing perception, Sādeqī was neither merely a military figure nor an artist without cultural grounding. Rather, he was someone who, from childhood and within the educational framework of the Safavid system, received essential religious, literary, artistic, and military training, and who—well before his period of displacement—was already recognized as a distinguished and culturally esteemed figure in literary and artistic circles. A close re-examination of primary sources further reveals that a considerable portion of modern scholarly judgments regarding his status, life trajectory, and identity are based on interpretations that do not correspond to the original evidence or reliable contemporary reports.
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