Islamic Awareness
© Islamic Awareness, All Rights Reserved.
First Composed: 1st July 2004
Last Updated: 29th October 2006
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
A display of the manuscript of the Qur'an in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, attributed to Caliph ‘Uthman. (a) The manuscript is very fragile and is placed in a cupboard to prevent further damage, (b) a closer view of the manuscript inside the cupboard, (c) a facsimile copy is available for consultation by readers, (d) and (e) facsimiles from the manuscript and (f) and (g) folios from the same manuscript which came from North Africa.
Date
2nd century hijra or 8th century CE.
Shebunin dated this manuscript to the late first / early second century hijra. On the basis of the orthography as observed in the 1905 facsimile, Jeffrey dated it to the early ninth century. More recently, Déroche had assigned a date to the second half of the eight century. The carbon-dating of a folio from this manuscript was carried out at Oxford . The result showed a 68% probability of a date between 640 CE and 765 CE, and a 95% probability of a date between 595 CE and 855 CE. Commenting on this result, Rezvan noted that the paleographic dating of this manuscript also indicated a date at the turn of the eight / ninth century CE.
Although the dates generated by the radiocarbon dating at either confidence level do not rule out the possibility that this manuscript was produced in ‘Uthman's time, palaeographic studies suggest an 8th century (2nd century hijra) date.
Size
55 cm x 70 cm; depending on the folio, length and width can vary by several centimetres. The 1905 facsimile edition is 50 cm x 67 cm and the actual written text is on average 50 cm x 44 cm. There are approximately 250 original folios extant.
Script & Ornamentation
Kufic.
It is a massive Qur'anic manuscript on vellum showing a well-formed Kufic script without diacritical marks and ornamentation. The verse endings are marked by small panels of diagonals lines; the tenth verse is marked with a square medallion illuminated in blue, green, red and manganese with a stellar design. The parchment has become very brittle with age. There is a restriction on free access and the manuscript is protected from light. Instead, a facsimile copy is available for consultation.
Approximately one third of the Qur'an from which these massive folios originate - the ‘Uthman Qur'an - is housed in Tashkent in Uzbekistan . Late in the 19th century the manuscript was in St. Petersberg , Russia , where it was studied by the Russian orientalist A. F. Shebunin and in 1905 a facsimile of it was published. It would appear that during this period in St. Petersberg, a number of folios were separated from this manuscript and subsequently ended up under the hammer at Christie's[1] with some folios appearing in Sam Fogg's collection of Islamic art. These folios came from North Africa . The extra-ordinary size of these folios from this Qur'an is unparalleled in publications in the Western world. Folios from the Tashkent manuscript were sold at Christie's ( London ) as lot nos. 225, 225a on 22nd October 1992; and lot nos. 29, 30 on 21st October 1993. In the years 2000 and 2003, a couple more folios appeared in Sam Fogg's Islamic Manuscripts / Islamic Calligraphy catalogues.[2]
In 1940, Mendelsohn published notes on the Columbia University facsimile copy of the Tashkent (Samarqand) Qur'an.[3] A couple of years later, Jeffery and Mendelsohn discussed the orthography of this manuscript.[4] For other discussions on the manuscript, consult these references.[5]
This manuscript is also known as the Samarqand manuscript.
Location
Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
Acknowledgements
We thank "Memory Of The World", UNESCO, for the pictures of the manuscript.
References
[1] Islamic Art, Indian Miniatures, Rugs And Carpets: London, Tuesday, 20 October 1992 at 10 a.m. and 2.30 p.m., Thursday, 22 October 1992 at 2.30 p.m., 1992, Christie's: London, p. 88 (Lot 225); Islamic Art, Indian Miniatures, Rugs And Carpets: London, Tuesday, 20 October 1992 at 10 a.m. and 2.30 p.m., Thursday, 22 October 1992 at 2.30 p.m., 1992, Christie's: London, p. 89 (Lot 225A); Islamic Art, Indian Miniatures, Rugs And Carpets: London, Tuesday, 19 October 1993 at 10.30 a.m. and 2.30 p.m., Thursday, 21 October 1993 at 2.30 p.m., 1993, Christie's: London, p. 20 (Lot 29); Islamic Art, Indian Miniatures, Rugs And Carpets: London, Tuesday, 19 October 1993 at 10.30 a.m. and 2.30 p.m., Thursday, 21 October 1993 at 2.30 p.m., 1993, Christie's: London, p. 21 (Lot 30).
[2] Islamic Manuscripts, 2000, Catalogue 22, Sam Fogg: London, pp. 8-9; Islamic Calligraphy, 2003, Catalogue 27, Sam Fogg: London, pp. 12-13.
[3] I. Mendelsohn, "The Columbia University Copy Of The Samarqand Kufic Qur'an", The Moslem World, 1940, pp. 357-358.
[4] A. Jeffery & I. Mendelsohn, "The Orthography Of The Samarqand Qur'an Codex", Journal Of The American Oriental Society, 1942, Volume 62, pp. 175-195.
[5] A. von Denffer, ‘Ulum al-Qur'an, 1994, The Islamic Foundation: Leicester (UK), pp. 63-64; F. Déroche, "Manuscripts Of The Qur'an" in J. D. McAuliffe (Ed.), Encyclopaedia Of The Qur'an, 2003, Volume 3, Brill: Leiden & Boston, p. 261.
The images above are reproduced from the stated sources under the provisions of the copyright law. This allows for the reproduction of portions of copyrighted material for non-commercial, educational purposes.
With the exception for those images which have passed into the public domain, the use of these images for commercial purposes is expressly prohibited without the consent of the copyright holder.