order of the Fish, or Mahi Maratib, was first instituted by Khusru Parviz, King of Persia, and grandson of the celebrated Naushirvan the Just.  Having been deposed by his general, Bahram, Khusru fled for protection to the Greek emperor, Maurice, whose daughter, Shirin, he married, and he was sent back to Persia, with an army under the command of Narses, who placed him on the throne of his ancestors in the year A.D. 591.[7] He ascertained from his astrologer, Araz Khushasp, that when he ascended the throne the moon was in the constellation of the Fish, and he gave orders to have two balls made of polished steel, which were to be called Kaukabas (planets),[8] and mounted on long poles.  These two planets, with large fish made of gold, upon a third pole in the centre, were ordered to be carried in all regal processions immediately after the king, and before the prime minister, whose cortege always followed immediately after that of the king.  The two kaukabas are now generally made of copper, and plated, and in the shape of a jar, instead of quite round as at first; but the fish is still made of gold.  Two planets are always considered necessary to one fish, and they are still carried in all processions between the prince and his prime minister.

The court of this prince Khusru Parviz was celebrated throughout the East for its splendour and magnificence; and the chaste love of the poet Farhad for his beautiful queen Shirin is the theme of almost as many poems in the East as that of Petrarch’s for Laura is in the West.  Nuh Samani, who ascended the throne of Persia after the Sassanians,[9] ascertained that the moon was in the sign Leo at the time of his accession, and ordered that the gold head of a lion should thenceforward accompany the fishes, and the two balls, in all royal processions.  The Persian order of knighthood is, therefore, that of the Fish, the Moon, and the Lion, and not the Lion and Sun, as generally supposed.  The emperors of the house of Taimur in Hindustan assumed the right of conferring the order upon all whom they pleased, and they conferred it upon the great territorial sovereigns of the country without distinction as to religion.  He only who inherits the sovereignty can wear the order, and I believe no prince would venture to wear or carry the order who was not generally reputed to have received the investiture from one of the emperors of Delhi.[10]

As I could not wait another day, it was determined that I should return his visit in the afternoon; and about four o’clock we set out upon our elephant—­Lieutenant Thomas, Sarimant, and myself, attended by all my troopers and those of Sarimant.  We had our silver-stick men with us; but still all made a sorry figure compared with the splendid cortege of the Raja.  We dismounted at the foot of the stairs leading to the Raja’s hall of audience, and were there met by his two chief officers of state, who conducted us to the entrance of the hall, when we were received