Ali Sabounchi,
Volume 2, Issue 10 (11-2024)
Abstract
The fallen angels are a common mythological-belief category in Semitic-Hebrew beliefs. The oldest source in which they are mentioned is the Book of Genesis of the Old Testament. In the Book of Genesis, the "sons of God" descend from heaven and mate with earthly daughters. In addition to the Bible, fallen angels are mentioned in other Judeo-Christian texts. In the Book of Enoch, they are called "Agrigori" who descend from heaven to mating with the daughters of earth and have strong and violent children who corrupt the earth. The Agrigori and their giant children incur divine wrath and are punished. The category of fallen angels is also mentioned in the "Quran" with a reference to Harut and Marut. In other written and illustrated texts of the Islamic period, the presence of fallen angels is also described and recorded through the "Story of Harut and Marut". Based on the aforementioned texts, it is possible to find mythological-belief commonalities about fallen angels and based on them, introduce and examine existing images. In the following article, five images from ShahTahmasbi's Falnameh and illustrated versions of Qazvini's Ajaib-ul-Mukhluqat and Gharayib-ul-Mujoodat, which depict the category of fallen angels, will be introduced and examined based on the mythological-belief commonalities found in ancient texts.