NI.

[Sidenote: Why no authentic history of Iran has survived.]

[Sidenote: A clear reference to the ambiguous Pahlavi script and to the
great difficulty of translating from it:]

[Sidenote: Enumeration of the sources of Iranian history.]

There are four dynasties among the kings of Persia and their enumeration
is given alone and without any history of the events of their time or
the characteristics of the kings of Persia during the protracted period
of their sovereignty. They were divided into four groups called the
Feshdadiya, the Kayaniya, the Ashghaniya, and the Sasaniya. Their entire
chronology is dubious and not certain since it was translated after 150
years from one language into another and from one equivocal set of
symbols for figures into another set of symbols, so that there remained
nothing for me with reference to a narrative, in these chapters except
to bring together the doubtful transcripts. I succeeded in finding eight
transcripts and these were the following:--The Book of the Reigns of the
Kings of Persia translated by Ibn al Mukaffa, the Book of the Reigns of
the Kings of Persia translated by Muhammad Ibn al Jaham al Barmak, the
Book of the History of the Kings of Persia which was taken out of the
treasury of the Khalif Mamun; the Book of the Reigns of the Kings of
Persia which was translated by Zaduya son of Shahuya of Ispahan; the
Book of the Reigns of the Kings of Persia which was translated or
compiled by Muhammad Ibn al Behram Ibn Mutyan of Ispahan; the Book of
the Chronology of the Kings of Persia which was translated or compiled
by Heshan Ibn Kasum of Ispahan, the Book of the Chronology of the Kings
of the Sasanian Dynasty which was improved upon by Behram son of Mardan
Shah, Mobed of the district of Shabur in the country of Fars. And when I
had collected together all these works, I compared one with the others
and then acquired what was necessary for the writing of this chapter.

[Sidenote: Incorrect translations from Pahlavi.]

And says Abu Mashar, the astronomer:--The majority of their [Iranian]
histories are interpolated and corrupt, and there is the corruption
because they have come down from a great many years ago and because they
have been translated from one writing into another and from one tongue
into another and hence there have been mistakes of either excess or
defect.

"And the Persians start their assertion from the Book which was brought
to them by Zaradusht and which was