This leaf comes from a magnificent two-volume Qur’an. The line of gold maghribi script at the top is the chapter, or sura, heading. The medallion in the left margin contains a brilliantly conceived two-layer vegetal pattern. In Qur’ans from the early Islamic period, such medallions took the form of palmettes, but by the time this Qur’an was copied, this pattern had assumed a preeminent position in the ornamental vocabulary.

Open full-size image