.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
The colophon of this magnificent Qur’an states that it was copied by the famous scribe Ahmad al-Nayrizi. Nayrizi (fl. 1682-1722 AD) was born in the town of Nayriz in Fars. His primary master in naskh was Muhammad Ibrahim bin Muhammad Nasir Qumi, known as Aqa Ibrahim Qumi (fl.1659-1707 AD). In the late 17th century Nayrizi settled in Isfahan where he came to the attention of Shah Sultan Husayn (r.1694-1722 AD) who became an important patron and by whom Nayrizi was given the honorific surname Sultani. He produced work for royal patrons for almost two decades.
Combining strength with elegance, Nayrizi's hand, as described by Raby, is 'a confident one, characterized by exceptionally well-formed letters. Its most striking features are its relatively large size and the wide spacing of the lines of text' (Nabil Safwat, The Art of the Pen, The Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art, London, 1996, p.212). It is with Ahmad Nayrizi that we find the development of a distinctly Iranian powerful naskh that went on to be used as the standard Qur'anic hand throughout the 19th century.
A prayer book copied by Nayrizi is in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York (inv.2003.239; illustrated in Masterpieces from the Department of Islamic Art in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 2011, no.191, pp.272-274). Notable copies of the Qur’an by Ahmad Nayrizi sold in these Rooms 10 April, 2014, lot 97 and more recently 27 April, 2023, lot 40.
The colophon to this Qur’an states that it was illuminated and refurbished in Mashhad on the orders of Hamza Mirza Hishmat al-Dawla. He was the son of Crown Prince ‘Abbas Mirza, a cousin of Nasir al-Din Shah, and one of the most prominent military officers in the reigns of Muhammad Shah and Nasir al-Din Shah. He served as governor of numerous provinces including Zanjan, Khorassan, Isfahan, Azerbaijan, Yazd, Khuzistan and Luristan. This colophon is complimented by the information in the cartouche on the inside of the back cover, which is dated Ramadan AH 1287/November-December 1871 AD. Here it states that the Qur’an was bound, burnished, illuminated and gilded for the library of the Amir Jang (“Commander of War”). Some sources report the title Amir Jang to have been awarded to Hishmat al-Dawla in AH 1288 in connection with his campaign to Tbilisi to confront the invading Russian army (Marjam Arjah, “Hamzah Mirza Heshmat al-Daulah”, Daneshname-ye Jahan-e Eslam, vol. 14, online version, https://rch.ac.ir/article/Details?id=8042, accessed 7 March 2025). This cover indicates however that Hishmat al-Dawla was already ennobled with this title by AH 1287. At the time the manuscript was refurbished, Hishmat al-Dawla was governor of Khorassan, which explains why the task was completed in Mashhad. The left-hand page of the illuminated frontispiece bears the slightly later date of AH 1289 / 1872-3 AD.
Combining strength with elegance, Nayrizi's hand, as described by Raby, is 'a confident one, characterized by exceptionally well-formed letters. Its most striking features are its relatively large size and the wide spacing of the lines of text' (Nabil Safwat, The Art of the Pen, The Nasser D. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art, London, 1996, p.212). It is with Ahmad Nayrizi that we find the development of a distinctly Iranian powerful naskh that went on to be used as the standard Qur'anic hand throughout the 19th century.
A prayer book copied by Nayrizi is in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York (inv.2003.239; illustrated in Masterpieces from the Department of Islamic Art in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 2011, no.191, pp.272-274). Notable copies of the Qur’an by Ahmad Nayrizi sold in these Rooms 10 April, 2014, lot 97 and more recently 27 April, 2023, lot 40.
The colophon to this Qur’an states that it was illuminated and refurbished in Mashhad on the orders of Hamza Mirza Hishmat al-Dawla. He was the son of Crown Prince ‘Abbas Mirza, a cousin of Nasir al-Din Shah, and one of the most prominent military officers in the reigns of Muhammad Shah and Nasir al-Din Shah. He served as governor of numerous provinces including Zanjan, Khorassan, Isfahan, Azerbaijan, Yazd, Khuzistan and Luristan. This colophon is complimented by the information in the cartouche on the inside of the back cover, which is dated Ramadan AH 1287/November-December 1871 AD. Here it states that the Qur’an was bound, burnished, illuminated and gilded for the library of the Amir Jang (“Commander of War”). Some sources report the title Amir Jang to have been awarded to Hishmat al-Dawla in AH 1288 in connection with his campaign to Tbilisi to confront the invading Russian army (Marjam Arjah, “Hamzah Mirza Heshmat al-Daulah”, Daneshname-ye Jahan-e Eslam, vol. 14, online version, https://rch.ac.ir/article/Details?id=8042, accessed 7 March 2025). This cover indicates however that Hishmat al-Dawla was already ennobled with this title by AH 1287. At the time the manuscript was refurbished, Hishmat al-Dawla was governor of Khorassan, which explains why the task was completed in Mashhad. The left-hand page of the illuminated frontispiece bears the slightly later date of AH 1289 / 1872-3 AD.