Kitāb Nuzhat al-qulūb, [1051, i.e. 1641].

Elegant copy of the important cosmographical and geographical work by Ḥamd Allāh Mustawfī Qazvīnī (d. after 1340), particularly significant for the human geography of the last period of the Īlkhān empire. Contributions to the cataloguing from Hossein Alizadeh and David Hughes.Shelfmark: Ann Arbor, University of Michigan, Special Collections Research Center, Isl. Ms. 274Origin: As appears in colophon at close on p.542, copied by Muḥammad Zamān ibn Sayyid Murād al-Ḥusaynī with transcription completed 5 Shaʻbān 1051 [ca. 9 November 1641].Accompanying materials: Scrap with notes between pp.416-417.Former shelfmark: "534 T. De M. [i.e. Tammaro De Marinis]" in pencil and "5/3" in ink on 'title page' (p.1).Binding: Pasteboards (quite heavy) faced in light brown leather and edged in dark red leather (leather faced and edged binding) ; Type III binding (without flap) ; doublures in brown leather ; upper and lower covers carry blind-stamped (with recessed paper onlays) mandorla, pendants and cornerpieces (each filled with vegetal composition) ; sewn in dark blue thread, two stations ; worked chevron endbands in pink and yellow, good condition ; overall in somewhat poor condition with much abrasion, delamination, staining, moisture damage, lifting and losses of leather, shrinkage, etc.Support: non-European (Persian) laid paper with 8 laid lines per cm. (vertical, fairly distinct, some curving) and no chain lines plainly visible, sturdy though crisp and transluscent, quite well-burnished, some inclusions.Decoration: Illuminated headpiece (ʻunwān / sarlawḥ ) at opening on p.2 consisting of small rectangular panel carrying the basmalah surrounded by gilt cloud-bands and flanked by swirling floral vegetal pattern in green, pink, lavender, yellow, white, etc. on fields of gold, surmounted by larger rectangular panel evoking book cover design with empty gold central cartouche (or mandorla) flanked by pendants and surrounded by swirling floral vegetal pattern on a lapis lazuli ground, surmounted by a scalloped semi-circular piece (dome) filled with the same floral vegetal designs on fields of lapis lazuli and gold ; entire piece surmounted by vertical stalks (tīgh) in blue and set into a well of gold with black vegetal design ; written area surrounded by frame consisting of innermost gold band flanked by black fillets with outermost red and blue rules ; keywords and some abbreviation symbols (stroke above notable words, etc.) rubricated ; overlining in red ; textual dividers in the form of inverted commas and discs in red ; numerous tables and line diagrams in red and black (see p.30, 64, 65, 67-69, 70, 71, 72, 83, 344, 346) ; two maps (including world with 7 iqlīms, seas, cities, locales, etc. see p.340-341 and p.496-497).Script: Nastaʻlīq ; elegant hand, characteristically serifless and with descent of words to baseline, exaggerated thickness of elongated horizontal strokes ; Arabic excerpts in a compact, elegant naskh, fairly vertical and adhering to baseline ; occasional vocalization.Layout: Written in 19 lines per page ; frame-ruled.Collation: 34 IV (272), I (274) ; almost exclusively quaternions ; lacuna on pp.28-29 (pages left partially blank) ; catchwords present ; pagination in pencil, Western numerals, supplied during digitization (skips two pages between pp.33-34).Colophon: "Scribal," reads "تم الكتابة على يد الفقير محمد زمان ابن سيد مراد الحسيني ستر عيوبهما وغفر ذنوبهما في خامس شهر شعبان سنه ١٠٥١ تم تم تم تم تم تم"Explicit: "و ختم سخن و دعا را برين كلمات اختصار رفت ... نجز الكتاب والحمد لله اولا واخرا وظاهرا وباطنا وصلى الله على محمد المصطفى طاهرا وافيا والسلام"Incipit: "چون واهب مواهب بى علت علت كلمته كه مبدع محژعات ومحژع مبدعاتست ..."Title from inscription on 'title page' (p.1).Ms. codex.Cat. Pers. MSS. Brit. Mus.,Spuler, B. "Ḥamd Allāhb. Abī Bakr b. Aḥmād b. Naṣr al-Mustawfīal-Ḳazwīnī," in EI2,Storey,Browne,Elegant copy of the important cosmographical and geographical work by Ḥamd Allāh Mustawfī Qazvīnī (d. after 1340), particularly significant for the human geography of the last period of the Īlkhān empire. Contributions to the cataloguing from Hossein Alizadeh and David Hughes.Mode of access: Internet.Acquired by purchase (funds donated by Horace Rackham).The author was born ca. 1281 and died after 1339-40 in Qazvīn. A Persian historian, geographer, and administrator (under the famous Rashīd al-Dīn). In addition to this text, he composed the Ẓafarnāmah, a verse history of the Islamic world up to his own time, and Tārīkh-i guzīdah, a concise prose history (supplied by D. Hughes).Inscriptions in pencil and ink on 'title page' (p.1) "534 T. De M. [i.e. Tammaro De Marinis]" and "5/3" ; traces of an oval seal impression on 'title page' (p.1) and at close on p.542 (along with possibly almond-shaped seal impression at head of the page) ; statement on final leaf (p.546) dated 1223 [1808 or 9]