Author of the 'Shahnameh', Iran's national epic, a great poet born in Tus. His work, completed over some thirty years, was decisive in preserving Persian language and literature. He died at Tus c. 411/1020 and was buried in his own garden. His monumental tomb (1928-1934, remodeled 1969) is an important site in Tus. (Sources: TDV; Encyclopaedia Iranica.)