Akbarnama or The History of Akbar by Abu l-Fazl d. 1602 is one of the most important works of Indo-Persian history and a touchstone of prose artistry. Marking a high point in a long rich tradition of Persian historical writing it served as a model for historians across the Persianate world. The work is at once a biography of the Mughal emperor Akbar r. 1556 1605 that includes descriptions of his political and martial feats and cultural achievements and a chronicle of sixteenth-century India. About the AuthorWheeler M. Thackston is retired Professor of the Practice in Persian and Other Near Eastern Languages at Harvard University.