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Folio from a Qur'an

ca. 700–725
Not on view
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.
This leaf is from the largest known Qur’an written in Kufic script. Its size suggests that it may have been meant for display in a mosque. The exuberantly large chapter markers are densely patterned, often with architectural elements such as the one here that ends in the left margin as an arch decorated with tassels. Winged motifs in this manuscript may be attempts to create abstract visions of angelic beings.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Folio from a Qur'an
  • Date: ca. 700–725
  • Geography: Made in Probably Syria
  • Medium: Brown and black ink and pigments on parchment
  • Dimensions: Overall: 21 1/8 x 24 7/16 in. (53.7 x 62 cm)
  • Classification: Manuscripts
  • Credit Line: Bibliothèque Nationale de France, Paris (Arabe 324c), fol. 39
  • Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters