Yazdigird Murdered by Khusraw the Miller (painting, verso; text, recto), folio from a manuscript of the Shahnama by Firdawsi

Yazdigird III (d. 651) was the last Sasanian king, ruling an empire rapidly losing territories and political power due to constant attacks by the Muslim Arab armies, the Byzantines, and the Turks. He met his end at the behest of the governor of Merv, Mahuy Suri, who learned that the fugitive king had taken refuge in a mill and ordered the miller to execute him. Firdawsi narrates in great detail the shah’s tragic death and laments the extinction of the dynasty, underscoring the treachery and greed of Mahuy and his unworthiness to wear the Iranian crown. The painting shows the miller as he approaches the king —“as if,” in Firdawsi’s words, “to whisper a secret in his ear”—and then stabs him with a dagger. Yazdigird wears colorful, gold-ornamented clothing and a crown, in contrast to the plain brown dress of the miller. The mill, with its grinding equipment and storage room, is illustrated in considerable detail.