al-Ṭarīqah al-Muḥammadīyah wa-al-sīrah al-aḥmadīyah, [1117, i.e. 1705].

Neat, well-glossed copy of the sermons and homilies of Birgivî (Birkawī, Birgilī) Mehmet Efendi.Shelfmark: Ann Arbor, University of Michigan, Special Collections Research Center, Isl. Ms. 35Origin: As appears in colophon on fol.294a (p.596), copied by Ibrāhīm ibn al-Ḥājī Ramaḍān. Transcription finished ("qad waqaʻa al-farāgh min taḥrīr hādhihi al-nuskhah al-sharīfah...") Muḥarram 1117 [April-May 1705].Accompanying materials: Numerous inserts carrying extensions of the glosses (paginated pp.9-10, 15-16, 23-24, 35-36, 41-42, 45-46, 61-62, 231-232, 349-350), often sewn or tipped in.Former shelfmark: British Museum, London "No. 111. Al-Tarikat al-muhammadiyah."Binding: Pasteboards faced in marbled paper (in blue, yellow, pink, white) with spine, fore-edge flap, and edges/turn-ins in dark brown (to black) leather (marbled paper faced, leather edged, framed binding) ; Type II binding (with flap) ; board linings in paper ; some red leather on flap ; marbled paper has been placed over blind stamped design (central lozenge with vegetal pattern) ; sewn in white thread, two stations, with primaries in dark blue thread ; fine worked chevron endbands in red and yellow ; in poor condition with much abrasion, staining, cracking and splitting of leather at joints, etc. ; upper board nearly detached and corners exposed and delaminating ; lower board cracked ; envelope flap is entirely gone and fore-flap is detaching from lower cover ; housed in box for protection.Support: European laid paper with roughly 11 laid lines per cm. (vertical), chain lines (horizontal) spaced 23-25 mm. apart ; watermarks include coat of arms with cross flanked by griffins, crown above and two circles below, upper with "A G R", lower with "I" (compare Heawood 755).Decoration: Text rubricated with abbreviation symbols, overlining, keywords, section headings, etc. in red ; textual dividers in the form of red discs, three inverted commas, etc.Script: Naskh ; clear Turkish hand ; virtually serifless, but occasional right-sloping head-serif on lām, etc. even free-standing alif ; effect of slant to the left ; mainly closed counters ; hand may change where line thickness changes (pp.351-526) but a very similar Turkish naskh.Layout: Written in 15 lines per page ; frame-ruled (impression of ruling-board clearly evident), both central area and margins.Collation: VI (12), 9 V(102), IV+1(111), 2 V(131), IV (139), 3 V(169), III (175), 7 V(245), VI (257), V (267), VI (279), V (279), IV (297) ; chiefly quinions ; first three leaves and final three leaves left blank ; catchwords present ; pagination in pencil, Western numerals, supplied during digitization (includes inserts, skips two pages each between pp.3-4, 57-58 and 139-140, mistakenly repeats p.557 twice).Colophon: "Scribal," triangular, reads: "قد وقع الفراغ من تحرير هذه النسخة الشريفة المسماة بطريقة المحمدية والسيرة الاحمدية لمولانا البركوي محمد افندي تغمده الله مغفرانه واسكنه بحبوحة جنانه من يد الحقير المذنب المحتاج الى رحمة الجليل ابراهيم ابن الحاجي رمضان يوم الثلث قبل الظهر من شهر المحرم في سنة سبع عشر ومائة والف والحمد لله والصلوة والسلام على محمد واله وصحبه اجمعين م م م"Explicit: "وجلاء القلوب فعليك بها وطالعها حتى تعلم حقيقة مقالنا وقول الحمد لله الذي هدينا وما كنا نهتدي لو لا ان هدينا الله ربنا لا تزغ قلوبنا بعد اذ هديتنا وهب لنا من لدنك رحمة انك انت الوهاب"Incipit: "الحمد لله الذي جعلنا امة وسطا خير امم ... وبعد فان العقل والنقل يتوافقان والكتاب والسنة يتطابقان ... فاردت ان اصنف الطريقة المحمدية واحببت ان ابين السيرة الاحمدية حتى يعرض عليها عمله كل سالك ..."Title from colophon on fol.294a (p.596).Ms. codex.Brockelmann, C. GAL,Neat, well-glossed copy of the sermons and homilies of Birgivî (Birkawī, Birgilī) Mehmet Efendi.Mode of access: Internet.Acquired by purchase along with Abdul Hamid Collection (funds donated by Horace Rackham).Bookplate of British Museum, London on inner front cover,"British Museum, London. No. 111. Al-Tarikat al-muhammadiyah." ; circular seal impression with figure of goat/gazelle in purple ink as well as inscription "186" in Western numerals on front flyleaf ; a waqf statement on fol.4a (p.5) reads: "وقد وقفت هذا الكتاب لرضاء الله تعالى ةقفا صحيحا بحيث لا يباع ولا يوهب ولا يرهن فمن بدله بعد ما سمعه فانما اثمه على الذين يبدلونه ان الله سميع عليم غفر الله تعالى لواقفه ولوالديه ولوالدي والديه واحسن اليهما واليه بلطفه وكرمه وفضله" ; also on fol.4a (p.5) and perhaps pasted over a final portion of the precedeing waqf statement, another detailed waqf statement in the name of al-Sayyid ʻAbd Allāh Adīb (Abdullah Edip), known as Jannatʹzādah (Cennet-zade), qāḍī of Erzurum, accompanied by his seal "عبد الله اديب", reads: "وقفت وقفا صحيحا شرعيا بشرط ان لا يخرج من بيت الكتب الذي بنيته في اتصال داري ان احتاجوا اشد الاحتياج بكفيل مرعى اورهن قوي وانا الفقير السيد عبده [كذا] اديب الشهير بجنت زاده القاضي بمدينة ارضروم عفي عنه في سنة اثنى وستين ومائتين والف" ; occasional brief waqf statements appear in margins throught, "وقف" or "وقفت هذا الكتاب لعن الله على البائع والمشتري" (see fol.294b/p.595), etc. ; extensive marginal and interlinear glosses, often extending on to inserts ; occasional marginal corrections ; notabilia marked "مطلب" or "مبحث" ; extensive abbreviations (sigla and others) employed to represent various authorities and works are elucidated on fol.4a (p.5) ; tail-edge inscription (likely title) virtually illegible