Examination of the Illumination Art in the Context of the Illumination Art of the Sura Head Decorations of the Holy Qur'an Attributed to Abdullah al Sayrafi in the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts

Abstract

Throughout history, Turks have produced important works in the field of book arts by combining the science they are interested in with art. The most striking examples of the art of illumination, which developed in different cultures and geographies, can be observed in manuscripts. In addition to the texts of the manuscripts, their decorations were also made with great care and mastery. Today, many museums, private collections and libraries have many illuminated manuscripts that are carefully preserved. The Mushaf-i Sharif attributed to Abdullah al Sayrafî, with inventory number 487 in the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art, is one of these works. The sūrah-head illumination decorations in this Mushaf-i Sharif constitute the subject of this study. In this article, the sûrah-head decorations of the Qur'ân al-kerif with inventory number 487 in the manuscripts section of the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts are analysed in terms of illumination features.

Within the scope of the study, the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts in Istanbul was visited between 14.11.2022 or 18.11.2022, and the Manuscript Collection was scanned digitally and the works were identified. By examining the visuals of the works one by one, first of all, researches were made on the date of writing of the Mushaf, the date of its arrival in the library, by whom it was written and its illuminator. The Mushaf attributed to Abdullah al Sayrafi, No. 487, was preferred because it has not been the subject of any other research before. For each illuminated page in the work, an application was made to the museum where it was found and 357 pages of images were delivered to me. In the article, 12 sûrebaşı illumination decoration and sûrebaşı rose adjacent to the decoration, 1 sûrebaşı illumination decoration and 1 only sûrebaşı rose were listed on the basis of having similar features, drawings of the illuminated sections were made, pattern features, motifs and colors used were analyzed. With this study, it is aimed to research the XIV. century period example of illumination art and to bring it to the science and art circles.