Persian MS 392 (The John Rylands Research Institute and Library, The University of Manchester)
Persian Manuscripts
Contents
Physical Description
Foliation marked at top-right corners of the a sides in Hindu-Arabic numerals in black ink.
Collation
Condition
Layout
Written in 1 column, with 27 lines per page. Ruled with a misṭarah hand guide.
Hand(s)
Written in a clear, small nastaliq hand in black, with subheaders in red.
Decoration
Illuminated header on folio 1b.
Inscriptions:
- The first right flyleaf a side (f. ia) bears the title of the volume and the name of former owner Colonel George William Hamilton.
- Folio 1a bears an undated, partially obliterated nasta‘līq inscription by former owner Āqā Muḥammad Kāẓim, son of Muḥammad Hādī Iṣfahānī, which he also signed twice with his tughra (calligraphic name emblem) above and below. A munājāt prayer in a bold nasta'liq hand trimmed off at the fore-edge.
Binding
Probably uniformly rebound in a hybrid British-Indian style in Multan, together with the other volumes in full red goatskin leather over pasteboards, without a flap (type III binding per Déroche), as a set for former owner Colonel George William Hamilton.
326 × 216 × 42 mm.
Handle with caution. In fair condition, text block split between 121b to 124a, and with the opening of other areas restricted due to cross-grain paper. Exterior abraded, tail headcap broken, and doublure separating at the tail edge of the left board, and white salts (spew) likely resulting from prolonged exposure to moisture.
Folio 1a bears a partial round black seal impression, intaglio-carved in three stacked nasta‘līq script lines, double-ruled, with the name of Kasht(?) Hādī, evidently a courtier of Prince Muḥammad Mu‘aẓẓam Bahādur Shāh, son of the Mughal Emperor ‘Ālamgīr I, who later succeeded his father as Shāh ‘Ālam Bahādur I (r. 1707–1712), dated 1085 AH (1674–75 CE) with what may be a princely regnal year of 21:
‘ کشت (؟) هادی مرید شاه عالم[۲۱] ،١۰۸۵’
28 × 28 mm.
Accompanying Material
Four folios (two bifolia) loosely inserted at the front of the volume bear a table of contents written in a hand consistent with many other volumes that Hamilton formerly owned.
History
Provenance and Acquisition
Formerly owned by one Āqā Muḥammad Kāẓim, son of Muḥammad Hādī Iṣfahānī, as per his inscription and signatures on folio 1a.
Subsequently obtained by Colonel George William Hamilton (1807-1868) who served in India from 1823 to 1867, latterly as Commissioner in Delhi. During his tenure, he acquired over a thousand Indian and Persian manuscripts, from which the British Museum selected 352 volumes after his death, now held in the British Library.
In 1868, Alexander Lindsay, 25th Earl of Crawford (1812–1880) purchased the remainder.
Purchased by Enriqueta Rylands (1843–1908) in 1901 from James Ludovic Lindsay, 26th Earl of Crawford (1847–1913).
Bequeathed by Enriqueta Rylands in 1908 to the John Rylands Library.
Record Sources
Bibliographical description based on an index created by Reza Navabpour circa 1993, derived from a manuscript catalogue by Michael Kerney, circa 1890s and his Bibliotheca Lindesiana, Hand-list of Oriental Manuscripts: Arabic, Persian, Turkish, 1898.
Manuscript description by Jake Benson in 2021 with reference to the volume.
Availability
To book an in-person or online appointment to consult the manuscript, visit Using the Special Collections Reading Rooms. For any other enquiries please email uml.special-collections@manchester.ac.uk.
Funding of Cataloguing
Iran Heritage Foundation
The John Rylands Research Institute
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