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Four Gospels in Arabic

737 AH / 1335 CE
Not on view
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.
A hurried glance at the decoration and script of this manuscript might suggest that it is a Qur’an, but the book in fact contains the four Christian gospels. Created for Arabic-speaking Christians in the Holy Land, it is a copy of what is known as the Arabic Vulgate, a translation drawn from Greek, Syriac, and Coptic versions of the Bible.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Four Gospels in Arabic
  • Date:

    737 AH / 1335 CE

  • Geography: Made in The Holy Land
  • Medium: Opaque watercolor, gold, and ink on paper; 205 folios
  • Dimensions: 10 5/8 × 7 7/8 in. (27 × 20 cm)
  • Classification: Manuscripts and Illuminations
  • Credit Line: British Library, London (Add. MS 11856)
  • Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters