Arts of the Islamic World & India

View full screen - View 1 of Lot 150. An illuminated Qur'an in 60 volumes, copied by Malik Muhammad al-Khwansari, Persia, Qajar, dated Muharram - Rajab 1279 AH/June 1862 - January 1863 AD.

An illuminated Qur'an in 60 volumes, copied by Malik Muhammad al-Khwansari, Persia, Qajar, dated Muharram - Rajab 1279 AH/June 1862 - January 1863 AD

Estimate

20,000 - 30,000 GBP

Lot Details

Description

Arabic manuscript on paper, 9 lines to the page written in naskh in black ink, interlinear translation in red nast'aliq, within gold and polychrome rules, verses separated by gold roundels with red, blue and green dots, surah headings in red on gold and polychrome illuminated panels, first volume with double page illuminated frontispiece, each subsequent volume with illuminated headpiece, each in stamped brown leather binding, signed Muhammad Baqir

text panel: 18.9 by 11.3cm.

leaf: 26 by 17.2cm.

Please note that there may be restrictions on the import of property of Iranian origin into the USA and some or all member countries of the Gulf Co-operation Council. Any buyers planning to import property of Iranian origin into any of these countries should satisfy themselves of the relevant import regime. Sotheby's will not assist buyers with the shipment of such items into the USA or the GCC. In addition, FedEx and US courier services will no longer carry Iranian-origin goods to any location. Any shipment services would need to be provided by a Fine Art shipping company.

The volumes of this manuscript bear the signature of both the scribe of the Qur’anic text, Malik Muhammad al-Khwansari, and the scribe of the interlinear translation, Ahmad al-Khwansari, both of whom sign in various forms. Although the hand of each scribe is very fine, they appear to be unrecorded. The present manuscript is particularly lavish, each volume introduced by a headpiece centred by an array of illuminated medallions and panels which lends a great sense of variety to the volumes. For a Qajar Qur’an in thirty parts, see Sotheby’s, London, 1 May 2019, lot 52, and Christie’s, London, 21 April 2016, lot 120.

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