Qur'an, 1450 - 1460

  • Islamic, Iranian

Ink, pigments, and gold on painted paper; binding: leather with gold and pigments

  • Overall (book): 17 1/2 × 15 inches (44.5 × 38.1 cm) Overall (manuscript): 12 × 10 1/2 inches (30.5 × 26.7 cm)

City of Detroit Purchase

30.323

The Timurids ruled most of Iran and Central Asia for much of the fifteenth century. As patrons of the arts they established kitabkhanas (royal library-workshops) in Samarkand and Herat, producing luxurious Qur’ans (the holy book of Islam) as declarations of their piety. These Qur’ans, of imposing size, were written in a variety of monumental cursive scripts and illuminated with a rich repertoire of ornamental motifs. The delicacy and intricacy of expression achieved by the royal Timurid style dazzles the eye on this sumptuous object of veneration.

(Hassan Khan, Tabriz, Iran)

1930-present, purchased by the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit, Michigan, USA)

Edwards, Holly. Patterns and Precision: The Arts and Sciences of Islam. National Committee to Honor the Fourteenth Centennial Islam, 1982, p. 31 (ill.). Masterpieces of Art (In Memory of W. R. Valentiner). North Carolina Museum of Art. Raleigh, 1959, cat. 214. Lentz, T. W. and G. D. Lowry. Timur and the Princely Vision. Exh. cat., Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Los Angeles, 1989, pp. 78-79 (ill.). [p. 332 described and dated c. 1425-1450] Blair, Sheila S., Jonathon M. Bloom, ed., Images of Paradise in Islamic Art. Exh. cat., Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College. Hanover, N.H., 1991, p. 55 (ill.). Henshaw, Julia P., ed. A Visitors Guide: The Detroit Institute of Arts. Detroit, 1995, p. 127 (ill.).

Islamic, Iranian, Qur'an, 1450 - 1460, ink, pigments, and gold on painted paper; binding: leather with gold and pigments. Detroit Institute of Arts, City of Detroit Purchase, 30.323.