Few Persian women have entire Dīvāns attributed to them, and in this study I place Zīb al-Nisā Makhfī (d.1702) in the conversation about critical changes in poetic trends, authorship and literary reception during the Safavid-Mughal period. Who is Makhfī the poet, and what does she represent in this phase of literary development and culture? Do people view her as part of the conversation on Persian poetry or is involvement owed more to her status as a patron? How is her poetry conceived of as part of the international Persian literary sphere? How does she view herself in light of these questions? I translate some of her mystico-erotic Persian ghazals from the Dīvān as well as some Safavid, Mughal and Qajar biographical anecdotes the poet into English, using this material as a starting point to examine unresolved issues related to the poet’s life and work. I survey sources on Makhfī and rethink assumptions about the poetess and especially her impact on the Persian ghazal tradition. Her ghazal and rubā’ī poems are deep, erotic, and heartbreaking, and her poetry has often been compared to those of Hāfiz. Makhfī deftly uses two pseudonyms, or takhalluṣ, which is not unusual but not common in the ghazal genre. In some instances, Makhfī adopts the male voice, shifting gender roles and playing with literary devices. The strong ironic tone of her lines is a good example of her style, and communicates what it means to be a woman during her time. I contrast the dominant poetic voice with a more gendered voice in early modern Persian poetry, and suggest a new framework for conceiving the poetic voice singing of erotic love and melancholia. By looking at Makhfī’s poetic corpus alongside other influential poets in her circle, such as Nāsir ‘Alī and Bīdil, I interrogate the existing historiography of sabk-i hindi and bazgasht. I particularly address the issue of how to relate a poetic persona to a real human person, and I hope to engage with it on the level of methodology: Makhfī's invocation of the feminine in Persian, and her life as a celibate poet, princess, and prisoner.