The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of April 19, 2024
Qur'an Manuscript Folio (Recto); Left Folio of Double-Page Illuminated Frontispiece
1500s
(1501–1722)
Sheet: 28 x 17.4 cm (11 x 6 7/8 in.); Text area: 8.4 x 6.4 cm (3 5/16 x 2 1/2 in.)
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1924.746.2.a
Location: not on view
Description
The Qur'an is the sacred book of Islam. In the view of orthodox Muslims, it is the literal word of God as revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (d. 632) in the Arabic language, and thus, recorded in the Arabic script. Because of its association with the divine word, Arabic calligraphy came to be a supreme art form in the Islamic world. As the quintessential symbol of the culture, it became a pervasive decorative element in Islamic art and architecture. Although secondary to calligraphy, a tradition of illumination—that is, ornamentation with colors and gold—developed to enhance the pages of the Qur'an. Because of the prestige associated with the book arts in the Islamic world, the decorative motifs employed by illuminators (scrolling vines, blossoms, lozenges, and cartouches) found their way into other art forms, for example, metalwork, textiles, and carpets.- ?-1924(Hagop Kevorkian [1872–1962], New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)1924-The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
- Sims, Lowery Stokes. The persistence of geometry: form, content, and culture in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 2006. Mentioned: no. 23, p. 116; Reproduced: p. 40
- Islamic art rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 16, 2015-December 19, 2016).Main gallery rotation (gallery 116). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (December 16, 2015-December 19, 2016).The Persistence of Geometry: Form, Content and Culture in the Collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland (MOCA), Cleveland, OH (June 9-August 20, 2006).Materials of the Artist. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 4-December 12, 1958).Art: The International Language. The Cleveland Museum of Art (October 2-November 4, 1956).
- {{cite web|title=Qur'an Manuscript Folio (Recto); Left Folio of Double-Page Illuminated Frontispiece|url=false|author=|year=1500s|access-date=19 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1924.746.2.a