Arts of the Islamic World & India including Fine Rugs and Carpets
Arts of the Islamic World & India including Fine Rugs and Carpets
Amir Khusraw Dehlavi (d.1325), Diwan, signed by Mahmud ibn Ishaq Shahabi, Persia, Safavid, dated 957 AH/1550-51 AD
Auction Closed
October 26, 12:30 PM GMT
Estimate
12,000 - 16,000 GBP
Lot Details
Description
Persian manuscript on coloured paper, 39 leaves, 9 lines to the page, written in nasta’liq in black ink, headings in gold, the text arranged in two columns, ruled in blue, red, green and gold, within gold speckled margins, catchwords, f.1b-2a with a Qajar illuminated frontispiece, f.39a with colophon, signed and dated, with text in gold clouds and Qajar floral illumination, in a brown gilt Safavid stamped binding with polychrome filigree doublures
23.9 by 14.7cm.
The scribe Mahmud ibn Ishaq al-Shahabi is mentioned by numerous literary sources. Originally from the village of Sitavash near Herat, al-Shahabi was renowned as a master in nasta’liq, following Mir ‘Ali Tabrizi’s style. He is said to have been among the artists moved to Bukhara at the capture of Herat in 1528-29, although none of his colophons give Bukhara as the place where they were copied. His recorded works are dated between 1518-19 and 1585 (Minorsky 1959, pp.131-2; Bayani 1348 sh, pp.876-880; Adamova & Bayani 2015, pp.421-3). An album by the same scribe was sold in these rooms, 19 October 2016, lot 132.
The manuscript is bound in a beautiful Safavid binding, finely worked with bird and animal details and closely comparable to a binding in the Detroit Institute of Arts (inv. no.1985.32.A).