The ‘aǧzāᶜ 14 and 15 of the Qur’ān, Kashmir c.1500 in manuscript

Arabic manuscript on paper of Central Asian or Kashmiri provenance, to be dated at the late 15th or early 16th century.

Leaf dimensions: mm. 230 x 165 ca.; text panel average dimensions: mm. 155 x 160 ca. Text written in muḥaqqaq style on a 7-line single column. Made up of 54 leaves, complete.

The decoration set is comprised of an illuminated double frontispiece in gold and colours (ᶜunwān); the text panel is framed by three red, blue, and golden adherent lines; Surahs’ headings in gold; gilt leather binding provided with flap. Traces of use, but in general still a very good item.

The text contains the aǧzāᶜ (pl. of ǧuzᶜ, “section”) 14 and 15: two consecutive thirtiests of the Koran, culminating in the centre of the Islamic sacred text. The ǧuzᶜ 14 starts from the very beginning of the Surah al-Ḥiǧr (‘The Stoneland’) verse 1 and ends up to an-Naḥl (‘The Bees’) v. 128, which is the last verse of that Surah. The following ǧuzᶜ (15) begins at al-Isrāᶜ (‘The Night Journey’), v. 1 and ends at al-Kahf (‘The Cave’), v. 74.