Another volume from the magnificent Qur'an manuscript seized by Holy Roman Emperor Charles V during the sack of Tunis in 1535, offered on sale at Sotheby’s!
A thread about its history 🧵1/6 2/6. In 1535, the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V (1500-58) conquered the Kingdom of Tunis from the Ottomans. His troops looted the city – the Great Mosque az-Zaytuna and the palace of Hafsid King Mulay Hasan. They seized several copies of the Qurʼan and took them back to Europe.

Such a thrill to meet today Qur'anic masterpieces by Kazasker, al-Uskudari and Sheikh Hamdullah! Three of the greatest calligraphers of the Ottoman Empire, now side by side in Alexis Renard's gallery 😍

They will be at the de Baecque auction in Lyon on 10 June. Take a look [1/4] 2/4 This magnificent mushaf was copied in AH 1283/CE 1866-67 by Kazasker Mustafa 'Izzet Efendi. Check the description and other pictures here: debaecque.fr/lot/147335/255…

The story of the Mingana-Lewis Palimpsest

1/6. In 1895, Mrs Lewis purchased a manuscript in Suez. It was a palimpsest : a Christian Arabic text from the 9th-10th CE, written on recycled parchment leaves with traces of several different texts. Among them, old Qur’ān leaves… 2/6. She and Mingana published a short study in 1914 with a very attractive title: "Leaves from Three Ancient Qurans, possibly pre-‘Othmanic". But World War I started, and the manuscript – which was then exhibited in Leipzig - disappeared until 1936…

Important early Qur'an leaf offered on sale at Sotheby's! This leaf – written in D.IV and not in B.Ib as assumed in the lot’s description – belonged in fact to an early Qur’an copy which displays the oldest endowment to the ‘Amr Mosque in Fustat, preserved to this day. A🧵! 1/5 2/5. Contrary to Sotheby’s description, the folio is written in a Kufic style called D.IV, maybe the oldest version of the 'classical' Kufic. A radiocarbon analysis supports a dating between 675 and 878 (95,4%), with 675–778 as the most probable range.

Early Qur’anic manuscripts : the Tübingen copy 🧵

1/10. Among the famous Qur’anic manuscripts well known today is the volume preserved in Tübingen University Library, MA VI 165, also considered as the earliest of this collection. Here is a short introduction. 2/10. This manuscript was brought from Damascus to Germany by J. G. Wetzstein, consul of Prussia in Damascus between 1848 and 1862. Although Wetzstein doesn’t mention it, the copy may have come from the Great Mosque of the Umayyads, but this hasn’t been demonstrated yet.

1/3. For more than 150 years, a treasure of Arab Muslim culture in Algeria was hidden in the Library of the Castle of Chantilly: The manuscripts from Tagdemt, capital of the state founded by Abd el-Kader (1808-1883) in N-W Algeria, which were seized by the Duke of Aumale in 1843. 2/3. In 2022, the Castle of Chantilly exhibited these 38 manuscripts that provide us an exceptional snapshot of the scholarly production, sociocultural and religious life after the 15th. Besides the Qur'an and the traditions, the collection mainly deals with sufism and fiqh

1/17. Hast-Imam Library in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Here is preserved one of the famous Qur'ānic manuscripts attributed to the third caliph ʿUthmān ibn ʿAffān.
Big thread on its fascinating history 🧵 2/17. During the Russian occupation of Central Asia in the 19th cent., General von Kauffman learned of the monumental manuscript, which at the time was stored in the Khodja-Ahrar Mosque in Samarkand.

On Wednesday 23th, the Louvre museum in Paris will unveil two leaves of a unique Qur’ān manuscript attributed to caliph 'Uthmān, coming from Katta Langar, a village located in South-East of Uzbekistan. A brief look back at the history of this mysterious manuscript🧵1/10 2/10. The manuscript is preserved in a mausoleum of a sufi saint Muhammad Sādiq, who lived in the 15th CE, and, according to the legend, settled in the region with several sacred relics. Among them : a Qur’ān manuscript written by the caliph 'Uthmān and stained with his blood.

1/10.The Ibn Yūsuf Library in Marrakech is one of the oldest Moroccan khizānāt. It houses today ancient and precious manuscripts that could illustrate the prestige of the city over the centuries. A thread about the complex history of the Southern rival of the Qarawiyyin Library🧵 2/10. The Library is named after the Great Mosque, built around 1120 CE by the Almoravid ruler ‘Alī b. Yūsuf b. Tashfin, who ruled over Morocco and Spain. During his reign, the city of Marrakesh became an important center attracting Andalusian and Moroccan scholars and artists.

1/4. The Qarawiyyin Library in Fes is the most ancient and famous library in Morocco. As part of the Mosque-University built in the 3rd/9th, a library probably existed already from that time. But its official foundation goes back to the 8th/14th by the Merinid ruler Abū ʿInān. 2/4. This ruler gift a great number of rare manuscripts from his own collection – including many precious Andalusian manuscripts – to the Qarawiyyin library. As did many rulers, princes and princesses, scholars after him and for the next centuries.

1/8. The Ṣanʿāʾ palimpsest is known as the only evidence of a different version of the Qur’an, hidden in its parchment. Despite its current fragmentary condition, we are now sure that it was at first a codex/mushaf, showing similarities with the so-called “Companions’codices” 2/8. The Ṣanʿāʾ palimpsest consists of not 1 but 2 Qurʾān texts that were sequentially copied onto the same material. The primary text - with the variants - was erased but the ink remains enough visible for it to be deciphered. The secondary text agrees with the canonical Qurʾān

Thread. The Mingana-Lewis Palimpsest

1/6. In 1895, Mrs Lewis purchased a rare manuscript in Suez. It was a palimpsest: a Christian Arabic text from the 9th or 10th CE, written on recycled parchment leaves with remnants of several different texts. Among them, old Qur’ān leaves… 2/6. In 1914, she and Mingana published a short study with the very attractive title: "Leaves from Three Ancient Qurans, possibly pre-‘Othmanic". But the 1st World War started, and the manuscript – which was then exhibited in Leipzig - disappeared until 1936…

My research project the Qur’ān attributed to the caliph ‘Uthmān ended last month. I think I’ve accomplished a lot during this last year, in accessing all of the dispersed fragments of this manuscript. But so much remains to be discovered about its fascinating history… I examinated a total of 942 leaves, dispersed in Paris, Gotha, Cairo, Istanbul and Detroit.. That's many materials for me, used to work on fragments of dozen of folios! And actually, Codex Amrensis 22 is not one but two manuscripts, mixed together at one moment of their history!

1/5. The Codex Topkapı Sarayı Medine nr.1 could be the Qur’ān attributed to Caliph ‘Uthmān, once kept in the Mosque of Medina, next to the Tomb of the Prophet. This and other Qur’āns and objects were removed by the Ottoman troups during the 1st World War and sent to Istanbul.

https://twitter.com/Sohailah12/status/1310237482945073157

2/5. This issue had a great impact. In 1918, the King of Hijaz asked for its restitution. The Qur’ān of ‘Uthmān even appeared in the Treaty of Versailles: France and Great Britain suspected Germany to have it and asked for its restitution. But Germany denied this claim.

One of the most beautiful decorative forms of Eastern Kufic is the so-called Qarmathian Qur’ān, a huge multi-volume manuscript on paper, probably written in the 12th CE, in eastern Iran. The leaves (around 2200 originally) are today dispersed in many collections and libraries. Safadi gave 2 explanations for the origin of the term Qarmathian : 1/. Linguistic derivation from the Arabic word qarmaṭa meaning to make the letter finer and to write the ligatures closer together. 2/. Possible relationship to the Qarmathians (al-Qarāmiṭa), the Shīa movement.

Thread. Parchment, papyrus, paper : which materials for ancient Qur’ān manuscripts?

1/11. The writing material is the 1st basic component of a codex.. And a very significant feature for shedding light on the history of the Qur’ān but also on the history of writing technology. 2/11. One of the most ancient writing materials, inherited from Antiquity, is of course papyrus. But already in the 4th CE, papyrus isn’t anymore the most suitable material for producing books, as its physi-cal properties aren’t well adapted to the codex’s shape.

Thread. Codex Amrensis 1

1/10. This Qur’ān is the 1st edited volume of the Serie Documenta Coranica. In the early 19th, groups of leaves, kept in the 'Amr mosque in Fustat, were collected by French scholars and antiquities dealers. The ms is now scattered in several collections. 2/10. In total, there are 75 leaves (about 20% of the Qur’ān). Their preservation actually could be partly explained with codicology. On 2 occasions, groups of 4 quires (each with 8 leaves) were collected together. Probably because these were still stitched together.

Thread. Ṣan‘ā’ DAM 01.29-1

1/12. We know today dozens of very early Qur’āns. All of them have only slight consonantal variants and follow the same order of the sūras (identical to our current edition). There are very few exception, the most famous one is the Ṣan‘ā’ palimpsest. 2/12. For now, the Ṣan‘ā’ palimpsest is very difficult to understand, because it is an isolated witness. But another ms, DAM 01-29.1, could help in our understanding of the palimpsest and shed light on its connection to ‘Uthmanic text.

Thread: The earliest dated Qur’ān ?

1/10. Dating the old Qur’ān manuscripts is a big challenge. This is due to the scarcity of clearly dated copies, which could serve as landmarks. Dated Qur’āns from early times are indeed very rare. Here are some thoughts about dates.. 2/10. In the ancient scribal rule, people use to write dates on manuscripts. Very often, the copyists write a colophon : a short text with sometimes his name, the date and place of copy, his patron’s name, location, etc... Other dates – for storage, restoration – could be added.

Thread. How to separate the sūrahs in early Qur’ān manuscripts ?

1/8. Empty space, ornament, heading…The scribes of the early manuscripts have known different ways to highlight the separation between the sūrahs. Is this feature a reliable evidence for dating the manuscripts? 2/9. In the middle of the 20th century, scholars established this chronological framework : 1. Empty space > 2. Ornamental headband (in official Qur’āns) // gradual introduction of headings (in private milieu) > 3. Sūrahs headings inserted in ornamental frame.

Thread : The Qur’ān and the birth of the Landscape format.

1/12. Most of the Qur’ān manuscripts written in Kufic are wider than they are high. Today, we’re quite ‘familiar’ with the landscape format. But from a Late Antique perspective, a horizontal codex was totally unknown! 2/12. Since the birth of the codex in the 3rd/4th CE, codices are always vertical or square (illustration: early Coptic codices). There is NO horizontal -or oblong- codex. So, when and why our Qur'ān scribes/craftsmen decided some day to transform the shape of their Sacred Book?