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Lot Essay
Produced under the reign of Sultan Abu Sa’id Mirza (r.1451-69 AD), this fine mathnavi manuscript is an example of Timurid illuminated manuscript production at its best. The illumination of our Mathnavi relates to that found on the frontispiece of a Timurid Qur’an, attributed to circa 1425-50 AD, in the Detroit Institute of Arts (30.323; Thomas W. Lentz and Glenn D. Lowry, Timur and the Princely Vision, exhibition catalogue, Los Angeles and Washington D.C, 1989, no.20, pp.78-79). In the catalogue describing that Qur’an, the authors write that Timurid illumination, while linked with the large-featured forms popular under the Ilkhanids and Mamluks, moved inexorably towards greater intricacy and finesse, as seen here. They go on to write that the emphasis in illumination shifted also to include not only the frontispiece but also the opening pages and different sections of the text (Lentz and Lowry, op.cit., p.332). In our copy, the preface to the main text is given the same level of attention as the frontispiece– written entirely in gold and contained within an elegantly illuminated border.
In many ways, the illumination is also very similar to another mathnavi of Rumi, copied in Herat in around 1450 AD and described as being of court quality (De Bagdad à Ispahan, exhibition catalogue, 1995, no.33, pp.166-169). A superb copy of a similar Timurid mathnavi sold in Christie's London, 21 April 2016, lot 80.
The final folio bears verses in praise of the mathnavi which were copied in presence of Qadri Efendi, a known Ottoman scholar who died in 1672 AD. The chapter colophons are dated as follows:
Chapter I and II, Jumada I AH 857/May-June 1453 AD
Chapter III, dated Jumada II AH 847 [probably meant to read 857]/June-July 1453 AD
Chapter IV, dated the last day of Jumada II AH 857/7 July 1453 AD
Chapter V, dated 1st Rajab AH 857/8 July 1453 AD
The final page has an added date on a gold ground of AH 852/1448-49 AD
In many ways, the illumination is also very similar to another mathnavi of Rumi, copied in Herat in around 1450 AD and described as being of court quality (De Bagdad à Ispahan, exhibition catalogue, 1995, no.33, pp.166-169). A superb copy of a similar Timurid mathnavi sold in Christie's London, 21 April 2016, lot 80.
The final folio bears verses in praise of the mathnavi which were copied in presence of Qadri Efendi, a known Ottoman scholar who died in 1672 AD. The chapter colophons are dated as follows:
Chapter I and II, Jumada I AH 857/May-June 1453 AD
Chapter III, dated Jumada II AH 847 [probably meant to read 857]/June-July 1453 AD
Chapter IV, dated the last day of Jumada II AH 857/7 July 1453 AD
Chapter V, dated 1st Rajab AH 857/8 July 1453 AD
The final page has an added date on a gold ground of AH 852/1448-49 AD