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Selections of Arabic, Persian, and Ottoman Calligraphy
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Qur'anic verses
AUTHOR/CREATOR
Calligrapher: unknown
CREATED/PUBLISHED
ca. 1250-1350
NOTES
Dimensions of Written Surface: 9.2 (w) x 12 (h) cm
Script: Maghribi
This calligraphic fragment includes verses 68-69 of the 5th chapter of the Qur'an entitled al-Ma'idah (The Table). These verses continue the text (verses 67-68) on the fragment's recto (AL-18 R). Two other fragments belonging to the same Qur'an manuscript and containing verses 60-63 and 142-144 from the 6th surah (Surat al-An'am, The Cattle) also are held in the collections of the Library of Congress (AL-19 R & V).
Surat al-Ma'idah addresses the corruption of religion by the Jews and Christians, and heralds Islam as the last of the monotheistic traditions. However, it promises good tidings for all those who abide by their religious doctrines:
Those who believe (in the Qur'an), / Those who follow the Jewish (Scriptures), / And the Sabians and Christians: / Any who believe in God and the Last Day / And work righteous deeds, / They shall not fear nor grieve. (5:69)
A number of Qur'ans similar to this fragment were produced on the Iberian peninsula c. 1250-1500. They were made for the Nasrids ruling from Granada, Spain (1232-1492) and the Marinids, who reigned from their capital in Fez, Morrocco (1248-1340). This Qur'an executed in large maghribi script most likely was produced under Marinid patronage ca. 1250-1350. Its script, text layout (7 lines/page), blue and green ink for diacritics, and verse markers are typical of this period (Lings 1976, pls. 97-98; and James 1992a: 218-219, cat. no. 55).
The oxidized copper contained in the green dots -- which here are used for demarcating the hamzat al-wasl (long initial "a") -- has now eaten through the paper. Blue ink is used for the duplication of a consonant (tashdid) and the silence marks (sukun). Verse markers consist of three interlacing gold circles forming a tripartite knot decorated with colored centers, as seen on the 4th line of text on the recto of this fragment. In the lower right corner appears a catchword written diagonally in black ink. This word presents the continuation of the ayah and is intended to help properly foliate the manuscript. The ayah marker on the 4th line of the verso of this text comprises a gold 8-petalled flower on a brown background painted within a round medallion. This particular verse marker indicates a fifth verse.
SUBJECT
Qur'anic verses
Maghribi
Islamic manuscripts
Islamic calligraphy
Illuminated Islamic manuscripts
Arabic script calligraphy
Arabic calligraphy
MEDIUM
15.5 (w) x 16.4 (h) cm
CALL NUMBER
AL-18
REPOSITORY
Library of Congress, African and Middle Eastern Division, Washington, D.C. 20540
DIGITAL ID
ascs 057
http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.amed/ascs.057
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