Talismanic Scroll
Not on view
Centuries before block-printing was introduced in Europe, the technique was used in the Islamic world to produce miniature texts consisting of prayers, incantations, and Qur’anic verses. These were kept in amulet boxes and worn close to the body or attached to a weapon. The text on this eleventh century scroll from Fatimid Egypt is in kufic script. References to warding off the evil eye and rewarding the punisher of demons who seeks refuge in the Qur’an point to the apotropaic powers of the text.
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