AN ILLUMINATED QUR’AN JUZ (IX), EGYPT, MAMLUK, SECOND HALF 14TH CENTURY |

surah al-A’raf (VII), beginning of v.88 to surah al-anfal (VIII) end of v.40Arabic manuscript on polished paper, 35 leaves, 7 lines to the page written in naskh in black ink, verses separated by gold and polychrome rosettes, f.1b with an illuminated blue and red headpiece, f.26b with surah heading written in gold outlined in black, in a contemporaneous stamped leather binding, with flap

In overall good condition, the margins are clean, areas of restoration to the paper, affecting mainly the lower side of the pages, dis-bound but complete, occasional various stains and minor holes affecting also the illuminated headpiece, as visible in the catalogue photo, the binding restored and with minor damages and holes, as viewed.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

A juz' from a thirty-volume set in a comparable script and with similar illuminated features (employing a similar palette of contrasting god and coppery red), can be found in the Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris, (arabe 5844). It was endowed by Sultan Barquq (r. 1382-99) to a khanqah or Sufi hospice (see exhib. cat. L'art du Livre Arabe du Manuscrit au Livre d'Artiste (Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris, 2002, no.45, p.46). A further comparable volume of the same date is in the Chester Beatty Library, 1493, illustrated in Elaine Wright, Islam: Faith, Art, Culture. Manuscripts of the Chester Beatty Library, London 2009, p.112, fig.75. Likely to have been later associated with the juz, this binding is a fine example of Mamluk production of the fourteenth/fifteenth century. The flap and upper board come from the same original binding, while the lower board is from another example of the same period. Both covers are decorated by a central stamped medallion with interlacing geometrical patterns, the edges of the flap and upper cover consisting of a running pattern of impressions of 's-shaped' scrolls, very similar to those found on two bindings now in the Oriental Institute in Chicago (inv. no.A12144 and A12167, Bosch 1981, p.123, .and p.128, no.33), respectively attributed to Egypt and Saudi Arabia and dated to the fifteenth century.