Notebook of Calligraphy
Not on view
This oblong manuscript bound on the short side is referred to as a safina (the Arabic and Persian word for ship). It is an anthology of love poetry in shikasta (broken) script in which the verses are set into cloud-shaped cartouches and set against a background of shimmering gold. Poetic anthologies in this format demonstrate the continuation of a literary tradition that originated in Iran and Central Asia in the 15th century and proliferated from the 16th century onward.
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