APIS Translation (English)
O.I. 12068: The title page has large central cartouche containing Surah 26:194-196, "That thou mightest become a warner in a clear Arabic tongue. And truly it is (foretold) in the Scriptures of them of yore."
Catalog Record: chicago.apis.7840 [xml]
| Title | Qur'an |
|---|---|
| Summary | Complete text of the Qur'an, except for parts of Surah 1:1-5. (Several verse count systems are used, including Kufan, Basran, and Medinan, both for the total and individual verse divisions.) |
| Citations | |
| Inv. Id | O.I. 12068 |
| Support/Dimensions | paper ; 31.0 x 42.0 cm |
| Condition | The manuscript is in fair condition, except that a few folios are torn and discolored, causing loss of or damage to the text. The margins of many other folios are torn. In almost every instance, they have been mended with light cream-colored paper. A few folios have been mended inside the text page. In many instances, an attempt has been made to bring the new paper to the same level as the old by scraping it. A few of the marginal ornaments are lost. The original boards and inner flap, made of old manuscripts, and their outer tooled-leather covering are well preserved. The whole manuscript, however, has been rebound. |
| Lines | 325 folios with 11 lines per page in Arabic |
| Recto/Verso | Source of description: On recto and verso: Qur'an |
| Hands | The initial title page headings are in ornamental Kufic. Titles of Surahs 3ff are in thuluth, with preference for the rounded variety. The text is in thuluth khafif, with the extended and open forms of the letters, except that r frequently has the mudghaamah form. The arrangements of the diacritical points are of interest, not because any of them are new, but because they are used quite generally here. The scribe has made special efforts to keep even margins. Our scribe has regularly avoided either dividing or crowding words at the ends of lines, but rather writes the same even hand to the end of the line, leaving a considerable vacant interval, and then finishing the divided word in the margin. The full system of punctuation symbols is used freely. Compound signs and the alif of prolongation have been added in red ink. Variations of the 7 master readers and their pupils are given in the margins. Catchwords at the bottom of the page are written in a different and poorer hand than the notes on the 7 readings. |
| Origin | Unknown |
| Language | Arabic |
| Date | IXth century A.H. |
| Note (general) | The dating scheme is based on the decorative designs and color schemes. Text area measures 21 x 30 cm. There are 3 scribal errors of omission (folios 13a, 183b, and 307b) and 1 instance of misarrangement of the sheets in binding (starting with folio 313, the order should be 313, 316, 317, 315, 314, 318ff). The end of a verse is marked with a small 8 petaled whirling rosette of gold with blue dots. 5 and 10 verse groupings are marked by marginal ornaments of gold ringed in blue containing the words khamsah and 'ashr respectively, written in Kufic. The 5 verse ornament is almond-like in design, with a long blue line projecting above and below. The 10 verse ornament is a large circular one. Each surah is introduced with a broad panel consisting of a central rectangle with a square at each end. Each square contains a floral design in gold on blue with touches of red. The rectangle contains the title and number of verses of the surah written in white in thuluth over gold. The remaining space is filled with gold arabesques over light red. The whole panel is framed in a band of gold and outlined in blue. A centered circular ornament of gold, red, and blue with a palmette design extends into the outer margin. No special note is made of juz' divisions. The ahzab and their quarters and halves and the sajdah are marked in red in the margins. The central unit of the title page is a square with a pointed star at its center. The narrow band of white links, which frame the star, are extended and interlaced to form geometric figures which enclose floral designs. Some are gold over red, others are gold and green with touches of red on blue. Two panels, one above and one below, have at each end a floral design within a circle touching a large central cartouche containing Surah 26:194-196 in Kufic. The rest of the space in the cartouche is filled with an ivy pattern of gold on blue. The remaining space in the panels is filled with white arabesques on black. A key pattern interspersed with small red squares with gold centers fills bands that separate the 2 panels from the central square. The broad border consists of delicate arabesques in gold on blue and has gold and blue "finials." The design of the 2 ornamental pages at the end is essentially the same as that of the title page. They lack inscribed panels and have 10 pointed stars instead of 12 pointed stars. The titles pages of Surahs 1 and 2 are also ornamented. The covers and the flap of the binding are edged with soft light brown leather. The back is bound with the same leather. A wide strip of this leather, attached to the back cover and the inner flap, protects the front edge of the book. Clean white end papers have replaced the originals. The inside of the flap is lined with brown cotton cloth. The tooled design of the covers has been copied by B. Moritz on the covers of his Arabic Palaeography (1905). |
| Note (general) | Location: Oriental Institute |
| Note (general) | Pub. status: Published: recto and verso |
| Subjects | Islam; Qur'an; Literary; paper |
| License |  This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 License. |
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