Qur’an Scroll

• Accession Number:AKM492
• Creator:Copied by Zayn al-‘Abidin Isfahani
• Place:Iran
• Dimensions:575 x 12.5 cm
• Date:1847
• Materials and Technique:Opaque watercolour, gold, and ink on paper

This magnificent Qur’an was copied in 1847 on a narrow paper scroll that is more than five metres (sixteen feet) long. The minute script employed here is known as ghubar (literally, “dust”). It is a miniature form of naskh that seems to have originally developed to transcribe messages transferred by carrier pigeons. Employing ghubar, in this case, provides the opportunity to copy the whole Qur’an in an easily portable form while creating a pleasing visual effect. The text is copied in a manner that leaves a pattern of cartouches in reverse, some forming Qur’anic verses in a larger script. An elaborate decorative panel, to the right, and a simple blue-and-gold outline, frame the whole composition.