King's Pote 121 (King's College Library, King's College Cambridge)

Pote Collection

Summary of Contents: 1 copy of Mathnavī.

Author: Jalāl al-dīn Rūmī جلال الدین رومی

Language(s): Persian

Colophon details: Place: Akbarābād Date: Monday, 24 Rabīʿ I, yr 13 of Aurangzeb i.e. 1081 Scribe: Anonymous.

Note concerning manuscript: A high quality codex in terms of book production but only contains the first half (books 1-3).

References

Browne no. 1132

Palmer no. 121

Catalogue of the Persian manuscripts in the British Museum (3 vols.) C. Rieu 1879-1883 pp.584-593 [BL Add. 27263]

Physical Description

Form: codex

Extent: 484 folios.

Dimensions (leaf): 11 × 9.7 cm.

Dimensions (written): 11.5 × 5.9 cm.

Foliation: Foliated.

Layout

14 lines per page.

Ruled in green, bright red, gold and lapis. Red rubrications. Catchwords.

Hand(s)

Script: Indian nastaʿlīq. Scribe: Anonymous.

Decoration

F.1v: a very fine sarlauh in gold and lapis with multi-coloured flowers. All pages have glistening gold floral drawings within gold framed margins. The text block throughout has been generously sprinkled with gold.

Binding

Reddish brown leather, European style. Plain leather doublures. Decorations: Gold inlaid, turanj, 2 pendants and a border of cartouches. Dimensions: 20.3 × 11.5 × 4.5 cm. Unboxed. Polier's number: 977.

History

Origin: Akbarābād; Monday, 24 Rabīʿ I, yr 13 of Aurangzeb i.e. 1081 AH

Provenance and Acquisition

The "Pote Collection" arrived in England from India in 1790 and was divided between the Colleges of Eton and King's, Cambridge, with the first half alphabetically going to King's. Both halves of the collection are now housed in Cambridge University Library on permanent loan. Most if not all of the manuscripts had previously been owned by Colonel Antoine-Louis Henri Polier (1741–1795).

Gift of Edward Ephraim Pote (d.1832) in 1788.

Record Sources

Manuscript description based on E. G. Browne, "A supplementary hand-list of the Muhammadan manuscripts, including all those written in the Arabic character, preserved in the Library of the University of Cambridge", Cambridge, 1922 and E. H. Palmer, "Catalogue of the oriental manuscripts in the library of King's College, Cambridge", J.R.A.S. v.3 (1867), pp.105-131 enhanced with additional descriptions and corrections by Shiva Mihan.

Availability

All manuscripts of the Pote Collection are on permanent loan at Cambridge University Library. Entry to read in the Library is permitted only on presentation of a valid reader's card for admissions procedures consult Cambridge University Library. Contact near_eastern@lib.cam.ac.uk for further information on the availability of this manuscript

Union Catalogue of Manuscripts from the Islamicate World