Type of description:

From the original

Typology

Qur'an

Current_location

Institution

Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana

Collection

Plutei

Present shelfmark

Plut. 44.8

Former shelfmark

Total pages

III, 137, III' fols

Folio measures

Material composition

Homogeneous

Writing support

Parchment

Textual composition

Single text

Textual interval

fols 1v-137r

Title on manuscript

Alcorani Arabicis characteribus exaratus

Title position

Front cover

Attributed Title

Language

Arabic

Script

Arabic

Incipit

,بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ مَالِكِ يَوْمِ الدِّينِ إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ

Incipit position

fol 1v

Explicit

قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ النَّاسِ مَلِكِ النَّاسِ إِلَهِ النَّاسِ مِن شَرِّ الْوَسْوَاسِ الْخَنَّاسِ الَّذِي يُوَسْوِسُ فِي صُدُورِ النَّاسِ مِنَ الْجِنَّةِ وَالنَّاسِ

Explicit position

fol 137r

Preservation state

Complete

Released date

1224

Released place

Maghreb

Other dates

1555

Other places

Colophon

كمل المصحف بحمد الله وحسن عونه وحوله وقوته في العشر الأول من شهر جمادى الأولى سنة إحدى وعشرين وستماية وصلى الله على محمدنبيه وعلى اله وصحبه وسلم تسليما

Colophon position

fol 137r

General decoration

Yes

Quranic structure decoration

Yes

Quranic reading

Warš

Illustrations

Yes

Marginalia

No

Link to library catalogue

(click me)

Bibliographical references

https://www.zotero.org/groups/2447618/euqu_european_quran/tags/BML%2C%20Plut.%2044.8/library

Descriptive card

The script is in Maghribi style written with brown ink; the vowels are red, sukūn and tašdīd blue, and hamza green. The codex is decorated in blue, red, and gold, showing two full-page squared tabulae ansatae at fols 1r and 137v with geometrical ornament covering the background. At fols 1v and 137r three rectangular tabulae ansatae frame respectively the titles of the first two suras, and the colophon. On the margins circular decorations mark the textual partitions (sura, ḥizb, ǧuzʼ); golden drop-shaped decorations mark the end of the verses. The manuscript was part of the original nucleus of the Laurenziana Library, namely the private collection of the Medici family, which was finally stored in the Monastery of San Lorenzo, in the hall designed by Michelangelo and inaugurated in 1571. From a note at fol. 1r we know that the codex was in the hand of a certain Aḥmad ibn ʻUṯmān in 1555, so it should have arrived in the Medicean collection after that date. Assemani, in his catalog, attests that on that date the codex was donated to Cosimo I, but this information is not in the note (he interpreted as such the verb azdāda "increased, augmented", but it is not clear to what it refers). A title in Latin has been added on the front cover of the Medicean bookbinding.

Entry author

Sara Fani