Lot 28
  • 28

Shams al-Din Hakim Shah Muhammad al-Bukhari, Sharh hikmat al-'ayn, a commentary on Hikmat al-‘ain ('Philosophy of the Fount'), by Najm al-Din Abu Hasan (d.1276-77 AD), a treatise on philosophy and metaphysics, signed by Shams al-Din ibn Sa'd al-Din(...), Anatolia or Near East, dated 796 AH/1393-94 AD

Estimate
15,000 - 20,000 GBP
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Description

  • ink on paper, bound
Arabic manuscript on paper, 180 leaves, plus 5 flyleaves, 24 to 25 lines to the page, written in naskh script in black ink, words and sentences highlighted in red, with 9 mathematical and geometrical diagrams in black and red, seal impression and Ottoman ownership notes at the beginning, in later brown morocco stamped binding, with flap

Condition

In reasonably good overall condition, the margins have been trimmed, f.1 to f.3 with dense marginal annotations, the rest of the manuscript with only sporadically marginal notes, water and various stains throughout, occasional restoration to the paper and holes, the diagrams in good condition, the folio with the dated colophon consolidated, as viewed.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Catalogue Note

The text of the present manuscript is divided into 2 qisms (parts), subdivided into 5 maqalahs for each qism, with many minor subdivisions into bahiths.

An eighteenth-century copy of this commentary is in the John Rylands Library, Manchester (see A. Mingana, Catalogue of the Arabic Manuscripts in the John Rylands Library, Manchester, 1934, pp.69-1, no.411 [246]). Two other copies are in the Chester Beatty Library, Dublin (see A. Arberry, A Handlist of the Arabic Manuscripts, volumes III and V, Dublin, 1958 and 1962, pp.29 and 117, nos.3566 and 4374 respectively). See also Brockelmann; GAL, I. 466, suppl. I. 847.

This particular commentary can be considered an early copy since the author al-Bukhari flourished in the fourteenth century.