‘An Ancient Persian Tale, Retold in the Georgian Tongue,’ and the Circle of Merchants in The Knight in the Panther’s Skin

Abstract

The article attempts to make a new interpretation of the line ‘An Ancient Persian Tale, Retold in the Georgian Tongue’ from the famous verse in the preface of the renowned epic poem by twelfth-century emi­nent Georgian poet, Shota Rustaveli. The line under scrutiny informs us that Rustaveli was retelling, in the Georgian tongue, an ancient Persian tale, hitherto rolled from “hand to hand” as an unset “pearl,” which he finally transformed into a precious pearl.

Sixteenth-seventeenth cc. Georgian king-poets Teimuraz I and Vakhtang VI explain that The Knight in the Panther’s Skin is not in fact a Persian story, but was an initiative of Queen Tamar, who compelled Rustaveli to imitate the Persian style. To my mind, the opinion voiced by the two king-poets can be considered reliable: the poem’s plot is indeed an original invention of the Georgian poet, while the literary conventions he used to express it in verse were based on the principles of Persian poetry. This view has been voiced by many Georgian and foreign scholars, with the main argument favouring this assumption being the ex silentio of Persian sources; that is to say, the absence of such a tale in Persian tradition. Further support for this supposition can be found in the fact that Rustaveli, in his poem, gives a negative portrayal of the merchants’ circle – something completely unacceptable in the Muslim tradition, as Prophet Mohammad and his first wife, Khadija, were both engaged in trade.

The author also provides additional parallel material in order to shed extra light on the universally acknowledged two-fold, Muslim and Christian, character of Rustaveli’s poem.