Walters Ms. W.676, Six leaves from Majma` al-tavarikh by Hafiz Abru

W.676

Six leaves from Majma` al-tavarikh by Hafiz Abru

Majmaʿ al-tavārīkh

Vernacular: مجمع التواريخ

Authority name: Ḥāfiẓ Abrū, d. 1430

Supplied name: Ḥāfiẓ Abrū

Name, in vernacular: حافظ ابرو

Note: Author dates preferred by cataloger: d. 833 AH / 1430 CE

These six leaves come from a historical Timurid work entitled Majmaʿ al-tavārīkh (Collection of chronicles) by Ḥāfiẓ-i Abrū (d. 833 AH / 1430 CE), that was copied and illustrated around 829 AH / 1425 CE. Two known Timurid illustrated copies of Majmaʿ al-tavārīkh from the ninth century AH / fifteenth CE are the dispersed manuscript previously in the collection of Emile Tabbagh and Parish Watson (ca. 829 AH / 1425 CE) and a copy dated 829 AH / 1425 CE (Istanbul, H.1653). The Walters' leaves come from the former. The text is written in naskh script in black, red, and reddish-brown ink; chapter headings are written in tawqīʿ script in red ink.

Early 9th century AH / 15th CE

Iran

Leaf

Historical

The primary language in this manuscript is Persian.

Paper

Laid paper

Foliation: 6

33.7 cm wide by 43.2 cm high

22.7 cm wide by 33.5 cm high

1. Columns: 1
2. Ruled lines: 33
3. Framing lines in red and blue

fols. W.676Aa - W.676Fa:

1. Title: Majmaʿ al-tavārīkh
2. Author: Ḥāfiẓ Abrū, d. 1430
3. Hand note: Main text written in naskh script in black, red, and reddish-brown; chapter headings written in tawqīʿ script in red
4. Decoration note: Six illustrations; framing lines in red and blue

fol. W.676Aa:

1. 
2. Title: Sacrifice of Ismāʿīl (Islamic tradition)
3. Form: Illustration

fol. W.676Ab:

1. 
2. Title: Text page of Majma` al-tavarikh by Hafiz Abru
3. Form: Text page
4. Label: This text page is the back of the illustration Sacrifice of Ismāʿīl, according to the Islamic tradition.

fol. W.676Ba:

1. 
2. Title: Military expedition of Ughūz Khān
3. Form: Illustration

fol. W.676Bb:

1. 
2. Title: Text page of Majma` al-tavarikh by Hafiz Abru
3. Form: Text page
4. Label: This text page is the back of the illustration Military expedition of Ughūz Khān, bearing the chapter heading.

fol. W.676Ca:

1. 
2. Title: Enthroned king with courtiers
3. Form: Illustration

fol. W.676Cb:

1. 
2. Title: Text page of Majma` al-tavarikh by Hafiz Abru
3. Form: Text page
4. Label: This text page is the back of the illustration Enthroned king with courtiers.

fol. W.676Da:

1. 
2. Title: Ughūz Khān receives a messenger from Damascus with a load of bows
3. Form: Illustration

fol. W.676Db:

1. 
2. Title: Text page from Majma` al-tavarikh by Hafiz Abru
3. Form: Text page
4. Label: This text page is the back of the illustration King and courtiers enthroned.

fol. W.676Ea:

1. 
2. Title: Birth of Buddha
3. Form: Illustration
4. Label: This illustration depicts the birth of Buddha (Shākmūnī).

fol. W.676Eb:

1. 
2. Title: Text page of Majma` al-tavarikh by Hafiz Abru
3. Form: Text page
4. Label: This text page is the back of the illustration Birth of Buddha, bearing the chapter title.

fol. W.676Fa:

1. 
2. Title: Sultan Sanjar with courtiers
3. Form: Illustration

fol. W.676Fb:

1. 
2. Title: Text page of Majma` al-tavarikh by Hafiz Abru
3. Form: Text page
4. Label: This text page is the back of the illustration Sultan Sanjar with courtiers.

Walters Art Museum, 1931, by Henry Walters bequest

Grube, Ernst J., and Maria Alberta Fabris. Muslim Miniature Paintings from the XIII to XIX Century from Collections in the United States and Canada: Catalogue of the Exhibition. (Venezia: N. Pozza, 1962), 53-55.

For the author and his works, see Subtelny, Maria Eva, and Charles Melville. "Ḥāfeẓ-e Abru." Encyclopaedia Iranica.

Leoni, Francesca. "A Folio from a Timurid Historical Manuscript in the Princeton University Art Museum." Record of the Art Museum (Princeton University) 68 (2009): 61-67.

Soudavar, Abolala. Art of the Persian Courts: Selections from the Art and History Trust Collection. (New York: Rizzoli, 1992), 64-66.

A Magnificent Collection of Near Eastern and Early Mediterranean Art ... Property of the Estate of the Late Emile Tabbagh, Paris and New York. Auction catalog January 3-4, 1936. New York: American Art Association, Anderson Galleries, 1936.

Canby, Sheila. Princes, Poets, and Paladins: Islamic and Indian Paintings from the Collection of Prince and Princess Sadruddin Aga Khan. (London: British Museum Press, 1998), 28-31.

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.