ABSTRACT
This paper discusses evidence for courtly patronage for the ancient sciences in specific post-classical societies in the Arab and Persianate worlds. It shows that there are plenty of historical sources for seriously challenging the widely held belief that courtly patronage for the ancient sciences disappeared in the post-classical period. Similarities and differences between the classical and post-classical period at large and between specific post-classical dynasties in particular are highlighted. The paper asks which disciplines courts sponsored, which products they privileged and which institutions and norms they used and mobilized for and through their patronage. The relationship between patronage for scholars in two main settings are compared – the court and the madrasa. It is suggested that the proposed causal link between the disappearance or decrease of courtly patronage and the so-called decline of the ancient sciences needs to be revisited.
