Practice precedes theory. - · PDF file(source image: sagda in MS Cairo, DAK, Masahif 9, vol....

Practice precedes theory.The example of the Mamluk Qur’an manuscripts

Jan Just WitkamLeiden University Institute of Area Studies (LIAS)

www.janjustwitkam.nl

Hamburg University, Centre for the Study of Manuscript

Cultures, December 14, 2017(source image: sagda in MS Cairo, DAK, Masahif 9, vol. 1, f. 363a)

Introduction (1):

It is a wide-spread mistake that if you wish to research a certain subject, the best

way is to start with reading what others have written about it, then start writing

yourself. There also is, on the other hand, the open mind, unfettered by any

theoretical approach and uninfluenced by any set of experiences formulated by

others, that brings us new perspectives. This is especially valid in a field that still

needs pioneering research on many crucial aspects. Of course, earlier secondary

literature plays a role in the final result, but not necessarily from the beginning of the

research onwards. One cannot begin from scratch.

I had to think of this mindset, that since a long time I have developed for myself by

trial and error, when I was asked, now some seven years ago, to write a book about

the Qur’anic manuscripts of the Mamluk period (1250-1517), taking the hardly

explored collection in the Egyptian National Library as a point of departure. That

collection was brought together in the early 1880’s when mosque libraries were

transferred to the newly founded Khedivial Library.

Introduction (2):

Presently, it is probably the largest such collection in existence, and at the same

time the least researched.

At the time, I had no idea what I was beginning. Yet, I had no intention to create a

theoretical framework on the basis of what others had written about the subject, nor

to fit into such a framework the data that I would collect from the manuscripts. I just

started looking at the manuscripts themselves, and wrote down what I was

observing. Theory could wait. I have been making such notes now for several years,

and my many hundreds of pages of observations are far from homogeneous. In the

years of my work on the Mamluk Qur’ans in Cairo I have, of course, learned a lot,

although from the beginning of my work I was far from unexperienced. The

continuous growth of my knowledge of my study material reflects a certain lack of

homogeneity in my working notes.

Introduction (3):

The Mamluk Qur’ans that I have intimately seen in the past few years are an

interesting cross-section of Mamluk book production. There are a few extraordinary

copies, the rest is run of the Mamluk mill. These Qur’ans show numerous features

that also can been discovered in non-Qur’anic manuscripts. In addition to that, the

production of Masahif has had its own requirements, which made it different from the

production of the rest of books. One of these differences is caused by the mass

production of the same text, for which the workshops of Qur’anic manuscripts in the

Mamluk period have been developing special techniques. My lecture focusses on a

number of these newly developed techniques of manufacture, that were all

empirically observed in actual manuscripts.

Acknowledgment:

In the period 2011-2016 the Foundation Thesaurus Islamic (al-Maknaz al-Islami) in

Cairo sponsored my work on the Mamluk Qur’an manuscripts in Egypt’s National

Library. I had an unhindered look at several hundreds of volumes, and I had unlimited

photography privileges. In all I made some 100,000 images.

Henricus Joannes Witkam (1914-1982) and part of his collection. Situation of ca. 1970. The Gratianus folio of Basel 1476 stands in the centre on the lower shelf in front. The lamp behind him is made of a parchment leaf of an old Antiphonarium.Source image: Th.H. Lunsingh Scheurleer, e.a., Het Rapenburg. Geschiedenis van een Leidse Gracht, deel 1 (Leiden 1986), p. 377.

Colophon of the Gratianus of Basel, dated June 10, 1476.

The practice that is my origin with

books: My father’s private library.

The exhibition area in the Bāb al-Khalq building of the

National Library just after the bomb blast of January 24, 2014.

The show cases (now emptied) have withstood most of the

explosion’s impact. Photo Madā Miṣr.

All manuscripts were transferred to the Corniche building.

Working conditions in the Egyptian National Library, Corniche, Bab al-Khalq (right)

My working place in the Qurʾān room, Hall 1

in Egypt’s National Library. Awaiting

ministerial permission to restart the Masahif

project, I work on another collection, here

rearranging disparate leaves of a Damīrī

manuscript.

Photo by Ana Beny, March 20, 2014.

Working conditions in the Egyptian National Library, Corniche

My new working place in Egypt’s National Library,

May 4, 2016. On the table is MS Cairo, DAK

Mushaf 142.

Portrait with one of my minders, Muhammad

Zeinhom, a library employee. Making friends is an

important part of the work.

My old working place in Egypt’s National Library, March

29, 2015. On the table is MS Cairo, DAK Mushaf 13

(weight 97 kg). For each double-page image I had to

climb the stairs, all together about a hundred times for

each opening with one or more Sura headings.

Finding the rules

Lay-out rules of a Mamluk Qur’an, dated 858/1454-

1455), with the ex-libris of Sultan Abu Sa‘id

Khushqadam.

Source: MS. Cairo, DAK, Masahif 90, ff. 1b, 2a

Lay-out rules for a Mamluk Qur’an, Arabic text

(Taken from MS. Cairo, DAK, Masahif 90, f. 1b, dated 858/1454-5, copy with on f. 2a an ex-libris of Sultan Abu Sa‘id

Khushqadam):

وأ ما ما هو ىف مجموع صفحاته، ...

فال ول أ ن لك صفحة أ ولها أ ول أ ية وأ خرها أ خر أ ية،

والثاىن أ ن أ ية لك جسدة من جسود التالوة أ خرها أ خر سطر،

والثالث أ خر لك سورة أ خر سطر،

ال اجلزء ال ول وال خري، فان الك مهنام اثنا عرش ورقة كوامل ل جل والرابع أ ن لك حزبني ىف عرشة أ وراق وصفحة، ا

الفاحتة والغالقة ابذلهب،

ن وجد شئ من واخلامس أ ن لك حزب جمزا ابلمثن والربع والنصف ىف لك دائرة اذلهب ىف هامش لك صفحة، وا

ذكل ىف غري موضعه املذكور فهو سهو من الاكتب،

...وقد مت ذكل حبمد هللا عز وجل، فاهلل تعاىل يغفر لاكتبه وللقارئ فيه، وملن نظر فيه،

Lay-out rules for a Mamluk Qur’an, English text

(Taken from MS. Cairo, DAK, Masahif 90, f. 1b, dated 858/1454-5, copy with on f. 2a an ex-libris of

Sultan Abu Sa‘id Khushqadam):

…

First, the beginning of each page should be the beginning of an aya, and the end

of each page should be the end of an aya.

Second, the end of each aya in which there is one of the sagdas should end with

the end of the line.

Third, the end of each sura should coincide with the end of the line.

Fourth, every two hizbs should be written on ten leaves plus one page, except the

first guz’ and the last guz’, because these two should be written on twelve

complete leaves because of the illuminated Fatiha and closing sura.

Fifth, every hizb must be divided into an eighth, a quarter and a half, [which words

must be] written in an illuminated circle in the margin of each page.

If there is something missing in this respect, it is the copyist’s negligence.

This is the end [of the rules], thanks the God, the Almighty. May God, the Highest,

forgive the copyist, the reader and whoever looks into it.

The application of some of the lay-out rules of a

Mamluk Qur’an, dated 858/1454-1455).

Size of the original: 86.5 x 60 cm, showing the closing text

of Surat Yusuf (12) and heading of Surat al-Ra’d (13).

The page shows the complete text of Qur’an 12:105-110.

The page begins and ends with a full aya.

Stages of writing:

- Rasm, the undotted script line;

- Tanqit, I’gam, placing of dots on and below the Rasm;

- Possibly simultaneously with the Tanqit: Tashkil,

vocalization, and partial Ihmal, indication of lack of I’gam.

- Thumn (one eighth, of the Hizb) in illuminated circle.

- Tahlil, expressions with reference to God’s name, written

in red ink, optional for this copyist.

Source image: MS Cairo, DAK, Masahif 90, f. 132b.

Example by comparison: Lay-out rules for 19th-century Ottoman Qur’ans

Twenty-nine rules are formulated:

(separate sheet found in MS. Leiden, Or. 11.701, ff. 90b-91a, copied 1279/1862-

1863)

1. Each one of the thirty agza’ is written on ten leaves […].

2. The beginning of each guz’ coincides with the beginning of the page.

3. On the beginning of each page is the beginning of an aya, and at the end of

each page is the end of an aya.

4. The end of each sura coincides with the end of the lines.

(Then follows a large number of rules about the handling by the copyists of

specific words or phrases, such as fil-Qur’an al-‘Azim, al-Hamdu lillah, which

must be written at the beginning of a line, etc.).

29. […] No word is cut into two, one part being at the end of the line, the other

part at the beginning of the (next) line, and everything that must be observed is

written in red ink.

The giant volumes

Several exceptional Qur’an manuscripts of the Mamluk period are of large size. It is the

literal meaning of Ta’zim al-Qur’an, ‘making the Qur’an bigger’, or rather ‘making the

Qur’an more grandiose’. That is still being done. Modern examples can be seen e.g. in

the Bayt al-Qur’an in Jakarta, Indonesia, and in the new main mosque in Kazan, Russia.

Making MS Cairo, DAK, Mushaf 18, ready for research,

and this one is still of moderate size.

Scholarly consideration:

- How the large leaves have been made?

- In one go, or by gluing two halves together?

- Or in leaves on a stub and not in sheets?

- Paper specially made? Probably yes, because ‘normal’

paper would tear by the sheer weight of the leaf.

- My solution for measuring the thickness of the paper: in

mm per one hundred leaves, which gives an average

thickness.

- Some giant volumes have thickness of 35 mm per 100

leaves.

- Some giant volumes are much heavier than others.

Details of writing

- Complex Mistara, one height

for the Rasm and the signs,

one lesser height for the tops

of the ascenders and the tails

of the descenders, and for the

interline.

- Unusual Ihmal marks

(dotting).

- Unusual reading marks (e.g.

Sukun).

- Inside the Aya-divider the

word Aya in neo-Kufic script.

- Frame written after text, blue

is always the finishing touch.

Source image: MS Cairo, DAK,

Mushaf 13, f. 4a, detail.

Division of labor in placing the aya-dividers (1).

1. Stamping the red circle at the place where the divider must come. This must be

done by someone who can read the text, and who knows where the dividers must

be placed. He is the learned specialist in the operation. He needs to have a stable

hand.

2. Covering the red circle with gold leaf, ideally making the red circle invisible. This

is often done in a sloppy way, and the red circle remains visible. This is done by

hand.

3. Stamping the gold leaf with a black floral design with petals. Occasionally

mistakes are made, and this how we know of the stamping procedures.

4. Dotting the circumference and the centre of the floral stamp with blue and red

ink. This is done by hand.

Operations 2-4 can be performed by people who are not necessarily able to read

the text.

Source image: MS Istanbul, Milli Kütüphane, C 44. Taken from:

Nil Baydar, ‘Newly identified techniques in the production of

Islamic manuscripts’, 2010, p. 72, fig. 8

Efficiency and division of labour in

the production of Mamluk Qur’ans.

Mixed techniques (2).

A detailed study of Mamluk Qur’an

manuscripts shows that these are

produced in workshops where an

elaborate division of labour was put in

place. Some twenty workers of different

qualifications can be identified in the

production of high quality manuscripts.

The work on the aya-dividers is a case in

point.

This process was first discovered by the

Turkish researcher Nil Baydar, who

described it as a Seljuq (Turkish!)

technique in Qur’an production. I believe it

is a Mamluk technique.

Division of labor in placing the aya-dividers (3)

A study copy, written in Naskh script, with select Tafsir

in the margins in red ink (not visible here).

Look at the constitution on the corrected aya divider.

Look at the traces of the Mistara, for both script and

interline.

The script has a selective use of Ihmal.

Source image: MS Cairo, DAK, Mushaf 143, f. 23a, detail; ff. 362b-363a.

Division of labor in placing the aya-dividers (4)

Example of a red circle (line

2), in a Qur’an with

handmade dividers (e.g. in

line 3).

The word Karim, that carries

the mistaken divider, often is

the last word of the aya, but

at first not here.

The dividers are placed on

top of the text.

Source image: MS Cairo, DAK, Mushaf

144, vol. 2, f. 117a, detail.

Carpets for prostration

At a number of places in the Qurʾān the reciter of God’s word is required to bow down

(Sagda), to prostrate.

In modern editions of the Qurʾān these moments are often indicated in the margin of

the text with a small ornament in which the word Sagda is written in neo-Kufic script.

Such indications, usually non-circular, with or without ornaments, we find also in the

Mamluk manuscripts of the Qur’an, albeit not very frequently. Sagda ornaments are

less often added than the counters of the Qur’anic verses in the margin, by which every

five and ten verses are indicated. Apparently, ornaments for Sagda, are an additional

luxury, at least that is my impression. The outlines are sometimes stamped.Source images: MS Cairo, DAK, Masahif 9, vol. 1, ff. 307a, 335a, 363a, 363b; vol. 2, f. 53a.

Hybrid form of

Sagda and ‘Ashar

Corrections (1)

In the Mamluk Masahif numerous

corrections in the text can be

observed. The repetitiveness of

the Arabic text, that some of the

copyists must have known by

heart, either in whole or in part, is

a possible cause of scribal

mistakes. Sometimes these are

downright mistakes, e.g.

homoioteleuton misreadings, or

mistakes ad sententiam, like in the

example. It makes the task of the

corrector all-important. In general,

readers have the duty to correct

any mistakes they may come

across.


142, f. 90b, detail, beginning of Surat

Ibrahim (14) with eulogy.

Corrections (2)

Interlineary correction of an easily

forgettable phrase: min ba’d

dhalika, because omitting does

not change very much of the

meaning.

Also visible:

- Tahlil in gold

- Aya dividers on top of the script.

- Aya dividers hand made.


144, vol. 1, f. 40b, detail.

Corrections (3)

The incorrect text was

covered with a thin layer

of fluid paper pulp, then

the correction is written

on top of that, after it has

dried.

The new paper pulp has

a slightly different colour.

The paper with the new

pulp is slightly thicker

than the paper without

extra pulp, as can be

ascertained with the help

of a micrometer (not with

the fingertips).


Mushaf 13, f. 163b, detail.

Corrections (4)

The mistake is corrected in

the margin by the craftsman

who usually writes the text

of the Sura headings. Use

of reference symbols visible

(applied later?).

Maybe the use of gold ink

with black outline can be

explained by the intention

of the corrector to indicate

that the text in the margin is

really Qur’anic.

Large part of Sura 2:93 had

been omitted.



Corrections (5)

Handmade correction of

an aya divider, that had

been overlooked by the

gildener, even if the red

circle had been there.

Three dividers on one

line may have been too

much. Nine petals are

now written by hand, not

stamped, and a colour

has been added (in order

to make up for the

absence of gold?).

Manuscript made for

Sultan Sha’ban, copied

757/1356.


Mushaf 8, f. 393b, details.

Corrections (6)

Correction by erasure

and/or covering. Cause of

mistake is possibly

assonance in the text.

Qur’an 3:178-179

Manuscript made for

Sultan Sha’ban, with

Waqfiyya of 770/1368-

1369.


Mushaf 9, vol. 1, f. 85b, detail.

Status in society (1)

Waqfiyya added at the

bottom of one carpet page of

a luxury Qur’an in 30

volumes, dated Gumada II

726/1326. The Waqif is a

high Mamluk military, Abu

Sa’id Sayf al-Din Bektamir.

The Mushaf’s place will be

the Qubba that this general is

building in al-Qarafa, near

the Sultan’s own monument.

The Waqfiyya also organizes

the management of the

library in the mausoleum over

the next generations.

Such luxury books remain

rare, however.

Source images: MS Cairo, DAK,

Mushaf 72, guz’ 26, ff. 1b, 39a.

The colophon (second half

shown here, on f. 39a)

mentions as the patron the

Sultan himself, al-Malik al-

Nasir Muhammad.

Status in society (2)

Possibly a Qur’an written

in the Mamluk barracks.

Arguments for this:

- Relatively late copy

(Sha’ban 911/1506).

- Name copyist with

mention of status and

rang (colophon).

- Special style of Naskh

script.

Further research also with

non-Qur’anic manuscripts.

Source images: MS Cairo,

DAK, Mushaf 131, ff. 291b-

292a.

Anomalies (1)

An uncorrected mistake:

Illuminated Sura heading upside-

down (Surat al-’Ankabut, Sura

29), in an alternative and

imperfect wording in neo-Kufic

script <al-Sura> allati tudhkaru

fiha al-’Ankabu<t>.

It raises questions about the

degree of literacy of the

illuminator.

It also asks for which rules apply

for the naming of the Suras.

Also visible:

- Tahlil in red ink.

- Corrective addition of the final

words of Sura 28.


144, vol. 2, f. 251b, detail.

Anomalies (2)

Variant readings

Variant readings are rare

in Mamluk Masahif, even

in the form of interlinear

additions.

Also visible:

- Sloppily executed aya-

dividers.

- Coloured Tahlil.



Anomalies (3)

Use of representants

Representants are often

trimmed off the page, but

it is evident that they have

been in wide use.

Occasionally they can be

seen, often only partly, as

is indeed the maker’s

intention.


Mushaf 150, guz’ 28, f. 36a, and

idem, detail

Anomalies (3)

Study copies of the Qur’an

can be distinguished in

contradistinction to

ceremonial or luxury copies

by these features:

- Copied in Naskh script.

- Ample space between the

lines and in the margin.

- Numerous notes of varied

nature: Tafsir, Qira’at,

general information.

- Divided into Agza’:

Mugazza’.

The present guz’ begins

with a basmala, but the

opening text is Sura 2:142.


Mushaf 101, guz’ 2, ff. 1b-2a

(Waqfiyya dated 857/1453).

Anomalies (3)

A Chinese Qur’an?

Or an atypical

Qur’an MS?

No further data

available.

Qur’an (text 21:1)

on paper.

Source image: MS

Cairo, DAK, Mushaf

118, ff. 1b-2a.

Anomalies (4)

Mamluk refurbishing of an earlier manuscript?

The colophon on f. 389b is difficult to read to to the deteriorated

condition of the MS, but it seems that it says that the copying

was completed on Saturday 25 Ǧumādā II 5?7 AH. The patron

is, according to the colophon, a Zangid ruler. This means that

the volume predates the Mamlūk era.

Some features of this Muṣḥaf may have influenced Mamlūk

scribes. It also possible that part of the additions were written in

the Mamlūk era (covered Sura titles; Aya dividers?).

The marginal additions are:

- Aya counters (five and ten).

- Hizb indications, not consistently added, and sometimes

supplied in a later hand without illumination.

- Division in seven (not a distinguishing feature).

- Variant readings with references as have been explained in

the beginning of the volume.

- At the beginning of the Suras statistics and information about

variants in the order of revelation are given.

Source image: MS Cairo, DAK, Mushaf 2, f. 120a.

Practice precedes theory. - · PDF file(source image: sagda in MS Cairo, DAK, Masahif 9, vol....

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