- Language(s)
-
Turkish, Ottoman
- Published
-
[Erzurum?, 1806].
- Summary
-
Fine copy of the classical encyclopedic work by Erzurumlu (Erzurumî) İbrâhim Hakkı (d.1780) addressing topics chosen from geography, astronomy and the natural sciences, as well as theology and Sufism. Table of contents at opening (pp.4-23). Followed by a copy of brief letter from İbrâhim Hakkı to one of his brethren (pp.729-730).
- Note
-
Shelfmark: Ann Arbor, University of Michigan, Special Collections Research Center, Isl. Ms. 826
Accompanying materials: Scrap from a printed page between pp.62-63.
Origin: As appears in colophon on p.728, copied by Mustafa bin Abdullah ( مصطفى بن عبد الله ), resident of Erzurum, with transcription completed Dhū al-Ḥijjah 1220 [February-March 1806]. As appears in preceding authorial colophon, composition completed 1170 [1756 or 7].
Binding: Pasteboards covered in dark red-brown leather ; Type II binding (with flap) ; pastedowns and flyleaves in blue wove paper ; upper and lower covers carry stamped, scalloped mandorla (filled with vegetal composition) and pendants (lower cover retains onlays), as well as blind-tooled border ; sewn in black thread, two stations ; worked chevron endbands in purple and yellow, good condition ; overall in fair condition with some abrasion, staining, lifting of leather, negative draw in upper cover, fore edge flap small and ill-fitting, etc. ; repairs to spine in dark brown leather.
Support: European laid paper ; mainly with 9-10 laid lines per cm. (horizontal), chain lines spaced 25-28 mm. apart (vertical), watermark of three hats (see p.7, 32, 420, 730, etc.) ; another type with 9 laid lines per cm. (horizontal), chain lines spaced 28 mm. apart (vertical), and watermark of large griffin (see p.24) ; all sturdy and well-burnished ; minor pigment burn at gold frames.
Decoration: Illuminated headpiece (ʻunwān / sarlawḥ) at opening of text on p.26 consisting of rectangular piece with empty cartouche defined by gold flanking pieces, surmounted by scalloped w-shaped piece filled with swirling floral vegetal decoration in white, green, red, yellow, and pink on a gold ground, itself surmounted by vertical stalks (tīgh) in black and set in a well of orange, yellow and gold bands ; simple illuminated headpieces appear at opening of table of contents (p.4) and other sections throughout ; written area throughout surrounded by gold frame defined by black fillets ; keywords and section headings rubricated ; textual dividers in the form of red inverted commas ; occasional overlining in red ; illustrations of cosmic maps with Kaʻbah and Ḥaram at Jerusalem on pp.52-53 (compare British Library Or. 12964, fol.23b-23a, reproduced in Milstein, "The evolution of a visual motif: the Temple and the Kaʻba," pp.37-38), charts and diagrams of the different levels of being, celestial spheres, earth, lunar cycles, eclipses, fixed stars, and other astronomical topics mainly in pink, yellow, orange, lavender, light blue, green, gold and black with some tables in red and black (see p.62, 80, 81, 88, 92, 130, 133, 134, 135, 136, 150, 154, 155, 156, 157, 167, 169, 172, 181, 182, 182, 184, 193, 194, 195, 196, 197, 198, 209, 217).
Script: Naskh ; clear, compact hand in a bold line ; serifless with slight effect of tilt to the left, pointing (for two and three dots) often in strokes rather than distinct dots, curvilinear but somewhat angular descenders.
Layout: Written in 35 lines per page, occasionally divided to two columns to set off verses ; frame-ruled.
Collation: i, V+1 (11), 21 V(221), V+1 (232), 4 V(272), IV (280), 8 V(360), III (366), i ; chiefly quinions ; catchwords present ; foliation in red ink, Hindu-Arabic numerals ; pagination in pencil, Western numerals, supplied during digitization (includes flyleaves and skips two pages between pp.47-48).
Colophon: "Authorial," reads "تأليف هذا الكتاب وقع فى تاريخ غقع ١١٧۰ نفع من به انفع" ; "Scribal," triangular, reads "قد تم تحرير هذا الكتاب المستطاب ... بعناية الملك الوهاب المسمى بمعرفتنامه الذى فوائده كثيرة للخلايق عامه من تأليف العالم العامل ... السيد الحاج ابراهيم الحقى الفقير الحليم السليم رحمة الله الرؤف الرحيم خليفة حضرت الشيخ سيدنا فقير الله قدس الله اسرارهم ... على يد الحقير الذليل الفقير المحتاج الى عناية الله الكريم مصطفى بن عبد الله الساكن في بلده ارزن الروم صان الله تعالى اهلها عن الافات والهموم ... فى شهر ى ذ [ذى] الحجة من سنة عشرون [كذا] ومائتين بعد الالف من هجرة من له العز والسعادة والشرف ... انك سميع قريب مجيب الدعوات ارحم بفضلك يا رب العالمين م م م"
Explicit: "ختمت هذا الكتاب بمناجات العارفين نظم حقى يه اولمز اوغلدر بو كتاب ... بو كتاب اوقيانى يازانى معرفت كنجيله باى ايت يا غنى تأليف هذا الكتاب وقع فى تاريخ غقع نفع من به انفع"
Incipit: "حمد بى حد وشكر بى عد وثناى مؤيد بر واحد فرد احد حضرتلرينه اولسونكه هر شان اكوانى علم ازليسيله مقدر ومبين قلوب ... بو حقير فقير حقيقى ابراهيم حقى اول عزيز شريف مخدومى السيد احمد نعيمى ايچون ... چونكه بو كتاب شريفك نظامى بو اسلوب لطيف اوزره تمام اولوب نظر قبولله مطالعه ايدنلرى حقيقت معرفت مولايه مطلع ايتمشدر پس بوكا معرفتنامه نام اولوب تاريخ اختتام بيك يوز يتمشه يتمشدر بيت دير بو تأليفنه حقى تاريخ معرفتنامه ده بيل ربكى هو"
Title from opening matter on p.27 and colophon on p.728.
Ms. codex.
Spine label with possible former shelfmark ; inscription in pencil on verso of front flyleaf "Turkish Astronomy from Rıza Nasrullah in Constantinople" ; former owners' mark (statement with faint oval seal impression) on recto of leaf carrying opening of table of contents (p.3).
- Physical Description
-
366 leaves :
paper ;
305 x 200 (200 x 100) mm.