ASTANA – The copy of a valuable manuscript related to the history of Kazakhstan found in France was published by the National Center of Manuscripts and Rare Books, reported the Kazakh Ministry of Culture and Information on Sept. 18.
Manuscript related to the history of Kazakhstan found in France. Photo credit: Ministry of Culture and Information
“Selected Chronicles” is a historical work by Mu’in ad Din Natanzi, written in Shiraz in 1413 and preserved in the National Library of France. Natanzi, born in the city of Natanz near Isfahan, lived in Shiraz in the early 15th century at the court of Iskander, the grandson of Amir Temir. He was a contemporary of notable poets like Haydar Khwarazmi and Hafiz Khwarazmi.
The book offers a comprehensive account of the Ak Orda (White Horde), a state in the Desht-i Kipchak region during the 13th to 15th centuries. It details the period when the Altyn Orda (Golden Horde) fractured into the Blue and White Hordes. The work includes a complete chronology of the Ak Orda khans’ reigns and a table listing the rulers, their parents, and burial sites. According to the book, 10 rulers of the Ak Orda are buried in Syganak.
It is written in Persian in Arabic script and consists of 15 chapters in 413 pages.
The book was found as part of the Archive 2025 program, which brings together orientalists, historians, and archivists to carry out search and research work in domestic and significant foreign archives.
