• Description: from Smithsonian

Folio from a Koran, Sura 5, verses 12-13

13th century

Detached folio; opaque watercolor, ink, and gold on parchment

H: 16.5 W: 15.5 cm

North Africa, Unclassified

Purchase, F1929.69

Korans in North Africa and Islamic Spain were written in a distinctive style known as maghribi, or Western script, which has undergone little stylistic change over time. Characterized by fluid lines and deep, open curves, the script was usually copied in brown or black ink, with diacritical marks applied in green, yellow, and red inks. Verse endings are often indicated by gold-knot designs that heighten the visual beauty of the page. Like other thirteenth-century maghribi Korans, the text here is written on parchment, a medium that had been replaced by paper in the rest of the Islamic world. The verses are from sura 5, al-Ma'ida ("Table-spread"), which addresses the observance of Islamic religious duties.

• Source: page archive copy at the Wayback Machine detail archive copy at the Wayback Machine

• The text written in the folio is the following in modern script:

مِنكُمْ فَقَد ضَّلَّ سَوَاء
السَّبِيِل فَبِمَا نَقْضِهِم
مِّيثـٰقَهُمْ لَعَنَّـٰهُمْ وِجَعَلْنَا
قُلُوبَهُمْ قَـٰسِيةً يُحَرِّفُونَ
الْكَلِمَ عَنْ مَّوَاضِعِهِ
وَنَسُوا حَظٍّا مِّمَّا
ذُكِّرُوا بِهِ وَلاَتَزَالُ

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