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Page with calligraphy, Sura 20:4-8 of the Qur'an

In the manner of: Yāqūt al-Musta‘ṣimī (Abbasid, died 1298)
late 13th-14th century
Object Place: Unknown (in the tradition of Baghdad)

Medium/Technique Ink, color and gold on paper; colored paper
Dimensions Height x width: 19.4 × 30 cm (7 5/8 × 11 13/16 in.)
Credit Line Helen and Alice Colburn Fund
Accession Number29.75
NOT ON VIEW
CollectionsAsia, Islamic Art
Calligraphers often demonstrated their skills by writing different styles and sizes of Arabic script on rectangular sheets of paper, which were then illuminated, mounted on pasteboard with colored and marbled papers, and assembled into accordion fold albums, known as muraqqaʿ. Calligraphic exercises were often made in the style of a particular master. This calligraphic panel dates from the late 13th-14th century and is in the style of the famous calligrapher, Yāqūt al-Musta‘ṣimī (d.1298), who lived in Baghdad and survived the fall of the city to the Mongols in 1258. Yāqūt is most well-known for perfecting the "proportioned script," in which letters are measured using a system of dots and circles. This calligraphic exercise containing Sura 20:4-8 of the Qur'an was written using the muhaqqaq style for the large script and the naskh style for the small script.

DescriptionSingle album folio; calligraphy in naskh and muhaqqaq with illuminated decoration
ProvenanceMiss Elizabeth (Riefstahl) Titzel (b. 1889 - d. 1986), New York; 1929, sold by Miss Elizabeth (Riefstahl) Titzel to the MFA for $5000.00 (total price for 29.56-136). (Accession Date: January 3, 1929)