MS 231 (Manuscript Collections, The Fitzwilliam Museum)

The Fitzwilliam Museum

A complete copy of the Qurʼān in two volumes.

Title: al-Qurʼān

Title: القرآن

Language(s): Arabic with interlinear Persian paraphrase

References

MS 231

Physical Description

Form: codex

Extent: 908 ff. total of 2 volumes

Dimensions (leaf): 257 × 153 mm.

Layout

The text presents interlinear Persian translation in red ink, in between the black Arabic lines; 7 lines in Arabic and 7 lines in Persian per folio.

7 in Arabic and 7 in Persian

Hand(s)

Decoration

Golden circles mark the end of each verse, and outside the ruled margins the letter 'ayn is written in alternating gold or in red ink. The text block is ruled in blue and gold, and the whole folios are framed in gold. The opening of each volume is highly decorated with gilded frames and unwans in gold and light blue, and with a large number of polychrome floral scrolls. Folios 2v and 3r of volume one are also highly illuminated with gilded floral scrolls on the borders of the text, and a gilded and light blue unwan at the beginning of the text. Volume two on folios 2v and 3r similarly present gilded floral scrolls on the borders, but no unwan.

History

Origin: 18th century CE

Provenance and Acquisition

Given by Col. Richard Burney, M.A., Christ's College in 1840.

Record Sources

Manuscript description based on Montague Rhodes James "A Descriptive Catalogue of the Manuscripts in the Fitzwilliam Museum", Cambridge University Press, 1895; with corrections and additions supplied by Marcus Fraser and Giorgia M. Maffioli Brigatti.

Availability

The manuscript can be consulted in the Graham Robertson Study room at The Fitzwilliam Museum, on an appointment only basis. To request an appointment, please email collections@fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk citing the manuscript number.

Funding of Cataloguing