Walters Ms. W.636, Collection of poems (divan)

W.636

Collection of poems (divan)

Dīvān-i Ḥāfiẓ

Vernacular: ديوان حافظ

Authority name: Ḥāfiẓ, 14th cent.

As-written name: Shams al-Dīn Muḥammad Ḥāfiẓ al-Shīrāzī

Name, in vernacular: شمس الدين محمد حافظ الشيرازى

Note: Author dates preferred by cataloger: fl. 8th century AH / 14th CE

This is an illustrated and illuminated copy of the collection of poems (dīvān) by Shams al-Dīn Muḥammad Ḥāfiz al-Shīrāzī (fl. eighth century AH / fourteenth CE), produced in India, possibly Kashmir. According to the colophon on fol. 231b, the text was completed by Mullā Muḥammad Qāsim Hamadānī on the 1st Shawwāl 1210 AH / 1796 CE. The codex opens with a double-page illuminated frontispiece (fols. 2b-3a) and is decorated throughout with square and rectangular panels as well as horizontal bands with floral decoration marking the end of odes, quatrains, or series of verses. There are forty-eight illustrations. The lacquer binding with central floral design is contemporary with the manuscript.

1st Shawwāl 1210 AH / 1796 CE

India (Kashmir?)

As-written name: Ghulām Muḥammadī maʿrūf bih Mullā Muḥammad Qāsim Hamadānī

Name, in vernacular: غلام محمدي معروف به ملا محمد قاسم همداني

Known as: Mullā Muḥammad Qāsim Hamadānī

Note: The colophon on fol. 199a gives the name of the scribe as Mullā Abū al-Qāsim. It is not certain if he is the same as Mullā Muḥammad Qāsim.

Book

Literary -- Poetry

The primary language in this manuscript is Arabic.

fol. 231b:

1. Transliteration: There are two colophons (199a and 231b) fol. 199a: tammat al-kitāb /1/ bi-ʿawn Malik [sic] /2/ al-Wahhāb rāqimuhu faqīr /3/ ḥaqīr Mullā /4/ Abū al-Qāsim /5/ ghafara Allāh dhanbahu /6/ fol. 231b: tammat tamām shud Dīvānī /1/ Ḥaẓrat Khvājah Ḥāfiẓ Shīrāzī raḥmat Allāh ʿalayhi /2/ az dastkhaṭṭ-i /3/ aqall al-ʿibād Ghulām Muḥammadī maʿrūf bih Mullā Muḥammad Qāsim Hamadānī /4/ bi-tārīkh-i gurrat-i shahr-i Shawwāl al-muʿaẓẓam taḥrīr yāft sanat-i 1210 /5/
2. Comment: Two colophons, the first in Arabic giving the name of the scribe as Mullā Abū al-Qāsim

Paper

Laid paper, probably Kashmiri

Foliation: ii+232+ii

Catchwords: Written obliquely on versos

9.0 cm wide by 14.0 cm high

5.5 cm wide by 9.5 cm high

1. Columns: 2
2. Ruled lines: 14
3. Framing lines in blue, orange, gold, and black

fols. 2b - 231b:

1. Title: Dīvān-i Ḥāfiẓ
2. Author: Ḥāfiẓ, 14th cent.
3. Scribe: Ghulām Muḥammadī maʿrūf bih Mullā Muḥammad Qāsim Hamadānī
4. Incipit: الا يا ايها الساقى ادر كاسا وناولها...
5. Hand note: Written in nastaʿlīq script (Indian hand)
6. Decoration note: Forty-eight illustrations; double-page illuminated frontispiece; illuminated headpiece; square and rectangular pieces with floral motifs; framing lines in blue, orange, gold, and black

fol. 2b:

1. 
2. Title: Double-page illuminated frontispiece
3. Form: Frontispiece
4. Label: This is the right side of a double-page illuminated frontispiece with the doxological formula (basmalah) inscribed in the cartouche. The palette is typical for illuminated manuscripts from Kashmir during this period.

fol. 3a:

1. 
2. Title: Double-page illuminated frontispiece
3. Form: Frontispiece
4. Label: This is the left side of a double-page illuminated frontispiece with the doxological formula (basmalah) inscribed in the cartouche. The palette is typical for illuminated manuscripts from Kashmir during this period.

fol. 8b:

1. 
2. Title: The Prophet Muhammad (not depicted) ascends on Burāq
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 13b:

1. 
2. Title: The story of Joseph and Zulaykhā
3. Form: Illustration
4. Label: This scene illustrates the story of Joseph (Yūsuf) and Zulaykhā, although it is unlikely that Joseph is the person depicted here, as he is generally represented with a halo. It is possible that Potiphar (al-`Aziz) is shown here. The inscription is not clear.

fol. 19b:

1. 
2. Title: Comparison of famous couples
3. Form: Illustration
4. Label: This illustration depicts three famous couples: Sultan Maḥmūd and Iyāz (top), Laylá and Majnūn (middle), and Farhād and Shīrīn (bottom).

fol. 24b:

1. 
2. Title: The famous couples Laylá and Majnūn and Farhād and Shīrīn
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 27a:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ and his beloved
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 28a:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ entertained by his friends
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 31a:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ telling the story of Shaykh Ṣanʿān
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 38a:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ talks of his passion to his beloved
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 41b:

1. 
2. Title: Jacob with Joseph and his brothers
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 43a:

1. 
2. Title: King Solomon and his courtiers
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 46a:

1. 
2. Title: Joseph on the throne
3. Form: Illustration
4. Label: The caption to this illustration reads: taṣvīr-i Yūsuf.

fol. 48a:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ instructing an angel to kneel at the gate of a tavern
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 54b:

1. 
2. Title: The prophet Khiḍr safely guides the boat to shore
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 58b:

1. 
2. Title: Moses, holding a fiery rod, comes to meet his future wife
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 61a:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ at the court of Manṣūr Shāh
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 63a:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ, his beloved, and the prophet Khiḍr
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 68b:

1. 
2. Title: Jacob, in the company of his sons, longs to hear news of Joseph
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 73b:

1. 
2. Title: The beheading of Siyāvush on the order of Afrāsiyāb
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 75a:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ extolling the virtues of his king
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 78b:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ at a party with his friends
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 81b:

1. 
2. Title: Laylá visits Majnūn in the wilderness
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 84a:

1. 
2. Title: King Solomon and the hoopoe who brought news from Queen Sheba
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 91b:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ delivers a message from Haẓrat Sulaymān permitting a drinking party
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 95b:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ and a tavern keeper
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 97b:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ, like a fish, is saved by his beloved whose beauty shines
3. Form: Illustration
4. Label: This illustration depicts the final verses on this page: "When my beloved takes the cup of wine, her beauty overshadows that of others. I have fallen into the sea like a fish; my beloved takes my hand and saves me."

fol. 99a:

1. 
2. Title: Laylá visits Majnūn
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 101b:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ at the court of Sultan Ghiyās̱ al-Dīn
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 105b:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ reads a verse that disapproves of haughty people
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 110a:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ complains about his beloved’s pride
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 114b:

1. 
2. Title: Sultan Maḥmūd and his servant Iyāz
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 120b:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ with a king, a policeman, a judge and a sufi, enjoying wine
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 125a:

1. 
2. Title: King Solomon seated on his throne carried by demons
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 131b:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ reciting verses on the habits of an elephant driver
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 132b:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ recites verses in praise of a king
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 133b:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ talks of the Water of Life as being better than his poetry
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 136b:

1. 
2. Title: A convivial gathering
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 139a:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ recites love poems for a beautiful girl
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 141a:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ taken by the beauty of a young woman
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 157b:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ recites complimentary verses to a king
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 163b:

1. 
2. Title: Sultan Maḥmūd and his servant Iyāz
3. Form: Illustration
4. Label: The caption to this illustration reads: taṣvīr-i Sulṭān Maḥmūd va-Iyāz.

fol. 169b:

1. 
2. Title: Alexander the Great, who never drank the Water of Life
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 178b:

1. 
2. Title: Majnūn in the company of Laylá
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 183b:

1. 
2. Title: Alexander the Great and the prophet Khiḍr
3. Form: Illustration
4. Label: The caption of this illustration reads: taṣvīr-i Iskandar Khiz̤r (thus).

fol. 188a:

1. 
2. Title: Kay Kāvus, Rustam, Jamshīd, and Kay Qubād
3. Form: Illustration
4. Label: The caption to this illustration reads: taṣvīr-i Kāvus Rustam Jam va-Kay.

fol. 192a:

1. 
2. Title: King Solomon and his demons before Jacob and Joseph
3. Form: Illustration
4. Label: The caption to this illustration reads: Sulaymān Yūsuf va-Yaʿqub.

fol. 196a:

1. 
2. Title: Khusraw and Shīrīn drinking wine
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 199b:

1. 
2. Title: Illuminated headpiece
3. Form: Headpiece
4. Label: An inscription in the margin reads: tarkīb-band-i Ḥāfiẓ.

fol. 202a:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ recites complimentary verses for King Manṣūr
3. Form: Illustration

fol. 214a:

1. 
2. Title: Ḥāfiẓ and Shāh Abū Isḥāq
3. Form: Illustration
4. Label: The inscription in the upper margin reads: tavārīkh (dates).

The binding is original.

Lacquer binding (without flap); central panel filled with floral design; border with floral gold-painted motifs on a black ground

Note dated 18 Shawwāl 1315 AH / 1897 CE (fol. 233b)

Walters Art Museum, 1931, by Henry Walters bequest

Gacek, Adam. Persian Manuscripts in the Libraries of McGill University: Brief Union Catalogue. (Montreal: McGill University Libraries, 2005), no. 39.

Principal cataloger: Gacek, Adam

Catalogers: Landau, Amy; Smith, Sita

Editor: Bockrath, Diane

Conservators: Jewell, Stephanie; Quandt, Abigail

Contributors: Barrera, Christina; Emery, Doug; Herbert, Lynley; Noel, William; Simpson, Shreve; Tabritha, Ariel; Toth, Michael B.; Valle, Chiara

The Walters Art Museum

Licensed for use under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported Access Rights, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/legalcode. It is requested that copies of any published articles based on the information in this data set be sent to the curator of manuscripts, The Walters Art Museum, 600 North Charles Street, Baltimore MD 21201.