Detached folio from a Qur'an; recto: Sura al-Muzzammil (the Enshrouded one), sura 73:15-20 and the title of Sura al-Muddaththir, recto begins with "ana arsalna", one column, 14 lines of text; verso: Sura al-Muddaththir (the Cloaked one), sura 74:1-30 and part of 31, verso begins with "ya ayyuha", one column, 15 lines of text; Arabic in black, blue and gold naskh and muhaqqaq script, sura headings in white thuluth script, vocalized in black with red letters for reading and recitation, marginal medallion and inscription; one of a group of twenty folios.
Border: Text is set in gold, red, blue and purple rulings on cream-colored paper with marginal medallions.
Inscriptions:
Recto: bottom left: waqf (endowment)
Provenance:
?-1942
Henri Vever (1851-1942), method of acquisition unknown [1]
1942-1947
Jeanne Louise Monthiers (1861-1947), bequest of Henri Vever [2]
1947-1986
Francois Mautin (1907-2003), bequest of Jeanne Louise Monthiers and Henri Vever [3]
From 1986
The National Museum of Asian Art, by purchased from Francois Mautin [4]
Notes:
[1] An accomplished French jeweler and collector, Henri Vever amassed a large and impressive collection of works of art during his lifetime. His holdings in Japanese prints and Islamic arts of the books, especially from Iran and India, were among the most important assembled in the early twentieth century. This object was in Vever's collection at the time of his death in 1942.
[2] Upon Henri Vever's death on September 25, 1942, his wife, Jeanne Louise Monthiers inherited the object. See exhibits F and G of Agreement of Purchase and Sale of the Henri Vever Collection, January 9, 1986, copy in object file.
[3] Upon the death of Jeanne Louise Monthiers, as stipulated in the will of Henri Vever, the family's assets were divided evenly between his two grandchildren. His only grandson, Francois Mautin inherited the collection known as "The Henri Vever Collection of Oriental Art and Manuscripts Including Persian and Indian Art and Manuscripts." This object is part of that collection. See exhibits F and G as cited in note 3.
[4] The Museum purchased the entirety of the collection from Francois Mautin on January 9, 1986. See purchase agreement, copy in object file. This work is part of the Museum’s Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection.
Research updated on June 27, 2024
Collection:
Arthur M. Sackler Collection
Exhibition History:
The Divine Word of Islam (July 4, 1993 to January 2, 1994)
