Faramarz, the Sistani Hero

In Faramarz, the Sistani Hero Marjolijn van Zutphen discusses the manuscripts, storylines and main themes of the shorter and the longer Faramarzname (c. 1100), in relation to Ferdowsi's Shahname and several other later masnawis about the warriors from Sistan (the Persian Epic Cycle). Faramarz, a secondary figure of the Shahname, gained importance in later epic traditions and as the invincible protagonist of both Faramarznames reached a status that equalled, if not surpassed, that of his famous father Rostam. Van Zutphen further shows how Faramarz displays parallels to the fictional figures of Garshasp (his ancestor) and Eskandar and argues that some story elements of Faramarz's Indian conquest may be rooted in historical events from both the Parthian and the Ghaznawid period.