Finding Aid for the Ilmiyah collection of Arabic and Persian manuscripts, ca. 1516-1893

Processed by UCLA Library Special Collections staff; machine-readable finding aid created by Caroline Cubé.

UCLA Library, Department of Special Collections

Manuscripts Division

Room A1713, Charles E. Young Research Library

Box 951575

Los Angeles, CA 90095-1575

Email: spec-coll@library.ucla.edu

URL: http://www.library.ucla.edu/libraries/special/scweb/

Descriptive Summary

Title: Ilmiyah collection of Arabic and Persian manuscripts

Date (inclusive): ca. 1516-1893

Collection number: 1654

Extent: 5 boxes (2.5 linear ft.) 1 oversize box.

Abstract: Collection consists of Persian and Arabic manuscripts about language and philosophy, as well as jurisprudence, religion, astronomy, medicine and philology.

Language: Finding aid is written in English.

Repository: University of California, Los Angeles. Library. Department of Special Collections.

Los Angeles, California 90095-1575

Physical location: Stored off-site at SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact the UCLA Library, Department of Special Collections Reference Desk for paging information.

Administrative Information

Restrictions on Access

PARTIALLY PROCESSED COLLECTION UNAVAILABLE FOR USE: Inquiries regarding these materials should be directed, in writing, to the Manuscripts Librarian, UCLA Department of Special Collections.

COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE AT SRLF: Open for research. Advance notice required for access. Contact the UCLA Library, Department of Special Collections Reference Desk for paging information.

Restrictions on Use and Reproduction

Property rights to the physical object belong to the UCLA Library, Department of Special Collections. Literary rights, including copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Ilmiyah collection of Arabic and Persian manuscripts (Collection Number 1654). Department of Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.

Processing History:

Processed by Ali Anooshahr in the Center for Primary Research and Training (CFPRT), with assistance from Laurel McPhee, Spring 2005.

Scope and Content

Collection consists of Persian and Arabic manuscripts about language and philosophy, as well as jurisprudence, religion, astronomy, medicine and philology.

Organization and Arrangement

Arranged in the following series:

Manuscripts 1-3 (Box 1)
Manuscripts 4, 8-12 (Box 2)
Manuscript 5, withdrawn
Manuscripts 6-7 moved to Collection 1055, Shaykhi Collection of Arabic and Persian Manuscripts, manuscripts 40-41
Manuscripts 13-14 (Box 3)
Manuscripts 25-32, 34-38 (Box 4)
Manuscript 33, withdrawn
Manuscripts 39-42 (Box 5)
Manuscript 43 [oversize] (Box 6)

Materials in this collection are in both Arabic and Persian.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

Genres and Forms of Material

Manuscripts--Arab countries.

Separated Material

Manuscripts 6-7 moved to Collection 1055, Shaykhi Collection of Arabic and Persian Manuscripts, manuscripts 40-41.

Container List

Box 1

Manuscript no. 1 The book of one who has never visited a jurist / The book of one who has never visited a jurist 1585 July

Physical Description: 486 leaves : paper ; 280 × 153 mm. bound to 281 × 158 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Work of Shiite theology and jurisprudence, in five parts.

Author: Ibn Bābawayh, Άlī ibn al-Ḥusayn, d. 941
Scribe: Άbd al-Raḥīm Māzandarānī
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ottoman Mecca
Layout: 21 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in black leather with brown and burgundy leather paste-downs.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, headings and marked passages in red; double border in gold blue; some marginalia.

Box 1

Manuscript no. 2 The book of belief and unbelief from the book [called] al-kāfī / Prayer book / The book of belief and unbelief from the book [called] al-kāfī / Prayer book 1700

Physical Description: 239 leaves : paper, ill. ; 245 × 165 mm. bound to 257 × 166 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Two works of Shiite theology.

Author: Kulaynī, Muḥammad ibn Yẚqūb, d. 941?
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia
Layout: 17 lines of text per page.
Script: Nastẚlīq.
Binding: Bound in faux red Morocco, stamped in gilt.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, headings in red; illuminations on 1b and 162b; few marginalia.

Box 1

Manuscript no. 3 [The light of the Sheikh of Tus] / [The light of the Sheikh of Tus] 1539

Physical Description: 305 leaves : paper ; 213 × 140 mm. bound to 216 × 145 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Work of Shiite theology.

Author: [Ṭūsī, Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥasan, 995-1067?]
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia
Layout: 8 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in red leather, stamped in gilt, with purple, green and blue marbled paste-downs.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, headings and marked passages in red; double borders in gold and blue; some marginalia.

Box 2

Manuscript no. 4 The laws and precepts of Islam / The laws and precepts of Islam 1670 April

Physical Description: 334 leaves : paper ; 285 × 189 mm. bound to 285 × 193 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Works of Shiite jurisprudence and theology.

Author: Muḥaqqiq al-Ḥillī, Jẚ far ibn al-Ḥasan, 1205 or 6-1277
Scribe: Mu̓min ibn Sayyid Iftikhār al-Lalih'ābādī
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia or Ottoman empire
Layout: 17 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in brown leather, blind-stamped, with leather fore-edge flap.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, headings and marked passages in red; double borders; marginalia; water damage.

Box 2

Manuscript no. 8 The jewel of desire / The jewel of desire 1712 July

Physical Description: 192 leaves : paper ; 287 × 188 mm. bound to 291 × 190 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Philosophy dedicated to Shāh Άbbās II (r. 1642 to 1667).

Author: Lāhījī, Άbd al-Razzāq, 17th cent.
Scribe: Muḥammad Ḥusayn Tabrīzī IṢfahānī
Language: Text in Persian
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia
Layout: 17 lines of text per page.
Script: Nastẚlīq.
Binding: Bound in black leather, stamped in gilt; black canvas spine.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, chapter headings in red; marginalia.

Box 2

Manuscript no. 9 The source of faith / The source of faith 1696 June

Physical Description: 167 leaves : paper ; 162 × 89 mm. bound to 162 × 95 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Philosophy.

Author: Lāhījī, Άbd al-Razzāq, 17th cent.
Scribe: Ḥasan ibn Tāj al-Dīn Ṣulṭān Muḥammad.
Language: Text in Persian
Origin: Ottoman empire
Layout: 14 lines of text per page.
Script: Nastẚlīq.
Binding: Bound in green and burgundy leather with marbled paste-downs; fore-edge flap.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, chapter headings in red; marginalia.

Box 2

Manuscript no. 10 Delightful elegance commenting on the Alfīya / Delightful elegance commenting on the Alfīya 1649

Physical Description: 172 leaves : paper ; 162 × 89 mm. bound to 162 × 95 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Suyūṭī's commentary on a work of poetics by Ibn Mālik (d. 1274).

Author: Suyūṭī, 1445-1505
Scribe: Άlī Taqī al-Khurāsānī
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ottoman empire
Layout: about 12 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in black leather, blind-stamped, with orange and green paste-downs.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, chapter headings in red; marginalia. Leaves [9-135] in different hands. Fore-edge title.

Box 2

Manuscript no. 11 Commentary on Ibn Ḥijjah's rhetorical excellence / Commentary on Ibn Ḥijjah's rhetorical excellence 1684

Physical Description: 108 leaves : paper ; 201 × 141 mm. bound to 202 × 145 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Four works, by three authors.

Works 1 and 2 are by Suyūṭī, [2-21] and [24a-80b], Sharḥ badī ᾽ īyah Ibn Ḥijjah and Sharḥ badī ᾽ īyah ᾽ā'isha, respectively;
3. Bā ᾽ ūnīyah, ᾽ā'ishah bint Yūsuf, d. 1516 or 17, religious and secular poetry, [81a-98b];
4. al-Māridīnī, Abū al-Ḥasan Άlī ibn al-Musharraf fl. 1442, Qasidah (hymn), [105a-108b].

These works are seperated by one-page texts on various topics, such as a list of Ottoman emperors to Mehmed IV (r. 1648-87), on leaf [24a].

Author: Suyūṭī, 1445-1505 [et al.]
Scribe: Άbd al-Qādir ibn Aḥmad Ḥāzim
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ottoman empire [Iraq]
Layout: 19 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in soft brown leather with burgundy inlays; burgundy spine.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked passages in red; marginalia.

Box 2

Manuscript no. 12 [Commentary on the Tā̓īyat of ibn al-Fāriḍ] / [Commentary on the Tā̓īyat of ibn al-Fāriḍ] [16--]?

Physical Description: 96 leaves : paper ; 180 × 117 mm. bound to 185 × 121 mm.

Scope and Content Note

QayṢarī's commentary on the works of Sufi poet Ibn al-Fāriḍ (1181 or 2-1235).

Author: QayṢarī, Dāwūd ibn Maḥmūd, d. 1350 or 51
Scribe: Muḥammad ibn Abū Bakr
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ottoman empire [Iraq]
Layout: 25 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in soft red leather.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked passages in red; marginalia. Title written on lower edge of text block.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 13 [Commentary upon the curative book in the science of conjugation] / [Commentary upon the curative book in the science of conjugation] [16--]?

Physical Description: 173 leaves : paper ; 182 × 134 mm. bound to 192 × 140 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Commentary on the grammatical work of Ibn al-Ḥājib (1175-1249).

Author: Jārbardī, Fakhr al-Dīn Aḥmad ibn al-Ḥasan, d. 1345
Scribe: Ḥusayn ibn Άlī ibn Tāj al-Dīn al-Najafī
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia
Layout: 18 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in brown leather with blind-stamped inlays.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, words marking quotations in red; marginalia. Author's name on bottom-edge.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 14 The adequate book commenting upon the complete book / The adequate book commenting upon the complete book 1690 January

Physical Description: 153 leaves : paper ; 245 × 137 mm. bound to 245 × 137 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Commentary on the grammatical work of Ibn al-Ḥājib (1175-1249), dedicated to a prince called Ibrāhīm ibn Yghrsh(?) Bilgä, the Khotanese king.

Author: Astarābādī, Ḥasan ibn Muḥammad, d. 1315
Scribe: Muḥammad Ismẚ īl ibn Mīr Muḥammad al-Ḥusaynī
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia
Layout: 21 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in brown leather, blind-stamped.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, underlining in red; marginalia. Cover title.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 15 [Anthology of religious prose and poetry] / [Anthology of religious prose and poetry] 1753

Physical Description: 97 leaves : paper ; 203 × 129 mm. bound to 203 × 142 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Literary anthology containing the works of Shihāb al-Dīn Aḥmad al-Suhrawardī, Muḥīy al-Dīn ibn al- Άrabī, Muḥammad al-Ḥamadānī, Muḥammad al-Ḥaṭṭāb, Badr al-Dīn al- ᾽ādilī, Abū Ishāq al-Asfarānī, and Abū al-Ḥasan Shādhilī.

Language: Text in Arabic, Persian, Turkish
Origin: Ottoman empire [Iraq]
Layout: 14 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in blue cloth over boards.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked passages in red; marginalia.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 16 The forty / The forty [16--]?

Physical Description: 388 leaves : paper ; 203 × 142 mm. bound to 200 × 140 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Shiite theology. An apologetic account, comprising 40 theses, of the Άlawite dynasty, paticularly of the twelve Imams in the light of various humanistic aspects.

Author: [Qummī, Muḥammad Ṭāhir, d. 1686 or 7]
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia?
Layout: 15 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in tan leather with blue, yellow and pink marbled paste-downs; black tooling on edges. Fore-edge flap.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked passages in red; marginalia. Leaves [1-38] possibly in author's hand.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 17 [Anthology of astronomy] / [Anthology of astronomy] [between 1795 and 1818?]

Physical Description: 167 leaves : paper ; 157 × 108 mm. bound to 157 × 107 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Contains seven separate essays, in both verse and prose, on astronomy, including astrology, the science of astrolabes, and cosmic psychology.

Language: Text in Persian and Arabic
Origin: Qājār Iran
Layout: Average 15 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh and Nastẚlīq.
Binding: Bound in black leather, blind-stamped, with brown leather paste-downs.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked passages in red; marginalia.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 18 [Treatise] on the science of prosody / [Treatise] on the science of prosody 1854 March

Physical Description: 46 leaves : paper ; 176 × 109 mm. bound to 177 × 113 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Author: Ṭabāṭabā̕ī, Muḥammad Rafί ibn Άlī AṢghar
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Qājār Iran
Layout: 12 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in soft red leather, with green paste-downs.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked passages in red; marginalia. Possibly signed by the author on leaf [1a].

Box 3

Manuscript no. 19 The pilgrim's gift / The pilgrim's gift 1733

Physical Description: 284 leaves : paper ; 197 × 129 mm. bound to 198 × 130 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Popular work on pilgrimage to Shiite holy sites.

Author: Majlisī, Muḥammad Bāqir ibn Muḥammad Taqī, 1627 or 8-ca. 1699
Language: Text in Arabic and Persian
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia
Layout: 20 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in black leather, with red leather on spine and edges; blue, red and yellow marbled paste-downs.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked passages in red; marginalia.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 20 Exegesis of the [Koranic] chapter Iron / Exegesis of the [Koranic] chapter Iron [18--]?

Physical Description: 108 leaves : paper ; 197 × 129 mm. bound to 198 × 130 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Theology. Exegesis by the Ṣafavid philosopher Ṣdr al-Dīn Shīrāzī on the 57th chapter of the Koran.

Author: Ṣadr al-Dīn Shīrāzī, Muḥammad ibn Ibrāhīm, d. 1641
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Qājār Iran?
Layout: 17 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in soft red leather.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked passages in red.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 21 Book of guidance for learning about the authority of God over [his] servants / Book of guidance for learning about the authority of God over [his] servants 1654 June

Physical Description: 138 leaves : paper ; 243 × 157 mm. bound to 247 × 168 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Work on the lives of Shiite Imams.

Author: Mufīd, Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad, d. 1022
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia
Layout: 22 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in brown and tan leather with green, blue and yellow marbled paste-downs.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked passages in red. Extensive marginalia. Title on spine and lower edge of text block. Insect damage.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 22 Blessed invocations / Blessed invocations 1580 March

Physical Description: 162 leaves : paper ; 166 × 108 mm. bound to 169 × 113 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Sayings attributed to the eighth Shiite Imam, with Persian commentary.

Author: Άlī al-Riḍā ibn Mūsá, d. 818 or 19
Scribe: Khalīl Allāh Shīrāzī
Language: Text in Arabic and Persian
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia
Layout: 10 lines of text per page.
Script: Nastẚlīq.
Binding: Bound in soft black leather, with tan leather along edges and spine.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked passages and underlining in red; marginalia.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 23 [Treatise on dialectics] / [Treatise on dialectics] 1697

Physical Description: 83 leaves : paper ; 186 × 111 mm. bound to 1889 × 117 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Two philosophical works, consisting of a treatise by Fakhr al-Dīn Muḥammad ibn ᾽Umar Rāzī entitled Risalah fi ᾽ilm al-kalam [1a-50b], and marginalia by Khalīfah Sultan entitled Tẚlīqah fī ᾽ilm al-kalām [51b-83b]. The preliminary pages of the first tract are missing, though the author may be identified on leaves 4b and 6b, where his name is written between the lines.

Author: Rāzī, Fakhr al-Dīn Muḥammad ibn ᾽Umar, 1149 or 50-1210 / Khalīfah Sultan (d. 1653)
Scribe: Muḥammad Karīm
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia
Layout: 19 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in soft red leather with tan leather spine.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked words and underlining in red. Extensive marginalia on the first title. Title on lower edge of text block.

Box 3

Manuscript no. 24 Commentary on the [book called] UṢūl al-kāfī / Commentary on the [book called] UṢūl al-kāfī 1665 May

Physical Description: 151 leaves : paper ; 193 × 98 mm. bound to 193 × 102 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Shiite jurisprudence. Also known as The marginalia of our lord Mullā Khalīl on the Preparation of the Fundamentals, by Muḥammad ibn al- Ḥasan Ṭūsī (995-1067).

Author: Qazwīnī, Khalīl ibn al-Ghāzī, 1592 or 3-1678 or 9
Scribe: Muḥammad NaṢīr ibn Afḍal Beg
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia or Ottoman Mecca?
Layout: 17 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in burgundy leather with green, pink and blue marbled paste-downs. Fore-edge flap.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked passages and underlining in red; marginalia.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 25 Mirror of truth / Mirror of truth 1790 July

Physical Description: 180 leaves : paper ; 205 × 118 mm. bound to 208 × 128 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Sufism, including anecdotes of holy men's lives, and verses from popular literature.

Author: Majẕūb Άlī Shāh, Muḥammad Jẚfar, d. 1823 or 4
Language: Text in Persian and Arabic
Origin: Zand Iran
Layout: 17 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in soft red leather, blind-stamped.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked passages and underlining in red; some marginalia. Title on lower edge of text block.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 26 Treatise on the proper reading of the glorious Koran / Treatise on the proper reading of the glorious Koran 1854 October

Physical Description: 68 leaves : paper ; 153 × 101 mm. bound to 153 × 104 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Compilation of traditions on the proper reading of the Koran.

Scribe: Άlī ibn Aḥmad
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Qājār Iran
Layout: 11 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in black leather over stiff paper boards.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked passages and underlining in red. Water damage.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 27 Synopsis of the Quintessence / Synopsis of the Quintessence 1654 February

Physical Description: 267 leaves : paper ; 174 × 83 mm. bound to 174 × 88 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Arabic grammar.

Author: Taftāzānī, Mas᾽ūd ibn ᾽Umar, 1322-1389?
Scribe: Abū Turāb ibn Ismā̓īl al-Ḥusaynī
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia
Layout: 17 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in black and brown leather, with canvas spine.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked passages and underlining in red. Some marginalia.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 28 The solar tractate on logic / The solar tractate on logic 1788

Physical Description: 187 leaves : paper ; 206 × 104 mm. bound to 206 × 108 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Treatise on logic.

Author: [Taftāzānī, Mas᾽ūd ibn ᾽Umar, 1322-1389?]
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Zand Iran
Layout: 17 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in soft brown leather.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked passages and underlining in red; occasional charts and marginalia.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 29 Treatise on the Friday prayer / Treatise on the Friday prayer 1716 June

Physical Description: 56 leaves : paper ; 161 × 96 mm. bound to 161 × 98 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Religious text on the regulation of Friday prayers.

Author: [Shahīd al-Thānī, Zayn al-Dīn ibn Άlī, 1506-1559 ]
Scribe: Muḥammad Taqī
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia
Layout: 17 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in multi-colored leather fragments.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, some underlining in red.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 30 [The treatise on the peculiarities of Friday] / [The treatise on the peculiarities of Friday] [before 1708?]

Physical Description: 8 leaves : paper ; 212 × 139 mm. bound to 220 × 147 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Religious work in a fine, ornamental script enumerating the forty peculiarities of Friday.

Author: [Shahīd al-Thānī, Zayn al-Dīn ibn Άlī, 1506-1559 ]
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia
Layout: 21 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in brown wrappers over boards.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked passages and underlining in red; extensive marginalia.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 31 Commentary on the summary of mathematics / Commentary on the summary of mathematics 1635 February

Physical Description: 110 leaves : paper ; 212 × 139 mm. bound to 220 × 147 mm.

Scope and Content Note

The author calls his work a commentary on the secondary problems of the text on mathematics by Bahā al-Dīn Muḥammad ibn Ḥusayn ᾽āmilī (1547-1621). Contains charts, tables, and drawings.

Author: al-Ṭabāṭabā́ī, Muḥammad Ashraf b. Ḥabīb Allāh al-Ḥasanī al-Ḥusaynī
Scribe: Άbd Allāh ibn Khalīfa
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia
Layout: 17 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in orange-brown leather, blind stamped, with blue paste-downs.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink; extensive marginalia. Appendix on the last three leaves. Fore-edge title.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 32 The essence of the foundations / The essence of the foundations 1638

Physical Description: 104 leaves : paper ; 190 × 126 mm. bound to 192 × 131 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Shiite theology by the famous scholar, sometime vizier to Shāh Abbās, the Ṣafavid monarch.

Author: ᾽āmilī, Bahā al-Dīn Muḥammad ibn Ḥusayn, 1547-1621
Scribe: Άbd al-Qādir ibn Ḥaydar
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia?
Layout: 7 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in brown leather, with blue, yellow and white marbled paste-downs. Fore-edge flap.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, chapter headings in red; extensive marginalia; some stains and smearing.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 34 The book of the Άsharīyah / The book of the Άsharīyah 1893

Physical Description: 132 leaves : paper ; 190 × 126 mm. bound to 192 × 131 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Fourteen tales of the martyrdom of the third Shiite Imam, Ḥusayn.

Author: Hāj Shaykh Jẚfar
Scribe: [Illegible] Bāqir
Language: Text in Arabic and Persian
Origin: Qājār Iran
Layout: 6 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in red leather, blind-stamped, with a brown leather spine.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked words in red; some marginalia.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 35 Pathway of the faithful / Pathway of the faithful 1743 September

Physical Description: 136 leaves : paper ; 211 × 125 mm. bound to 211 × 132 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Religious text on Sufism.

Author: Ghazzālī, 1058-1111
Scribe: Shams al-Dīn
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Afshār Persia
Layout: 16 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in brown leather, blind stamped.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked words in red; some marginalia.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 36 Tractate on Arabic lingustics / Tractate on Arabic lingustics 1820 February

Physical Description: 116 leaves : paper ; 207 × 147 mm. bound to 207 × 147 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Two works. The first work is Qatr al-nadá, [1-84]. The second work is entitled MukhtaṢarī dar abyāt-I sharḥ-I qatr, (Brief remarks on the verses of Sharḥ-I qatr), a commentary on the first text, by Niẓām al-Dīn Aḥmad al-Ardabīlī. Leaves [88b-116b] contain an Arabic grammar.

Author: Ibn Hishām, Άbd Allāh ibn Yūsuf, 1309-1360 / Niẓām al-Dīn Aḥmad al-Ardabīlī
Scribe: Afrāsīyāb ibn Malik al-Ḥaddād
Language: Text in Arabic and Persian
Origin: Qājār Iran
Layout: 15 lines of text per page.
Script: Nastẚlīq.
Binding: Bound in soft brown leather, blind-stamped.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked words and underlining in red; some water damage.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 37 Systematic account of the principal means of Shiism / Systematic account of the principal means of Shiism [16--]?

Physical Description: 82 leaves : paper ; 187 × 120 mm. bound to 197 × 122 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Shiite theology and jurisprudence.

Author: Ḥurr al-᾽āmilī, Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥasan, 1624-1693
Language: Text in Arabic and Persian
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia
Layout: 16 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in soft brown leather, with green leather on edges.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked passages and some underlining in red; some marginalia.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 38 The book of important chapters about the fundamentals regarding the Imams / The book of important chapters about the fundamentals regarding the Imams 1697

Physical Description: 300 leaves : paper ; 180 × 116 mm. bound to 182 × 127 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Work of theology on Shiite Imams.

Author: Ḥurr al-᾽āmilī, Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥasan, 1624-1693
Scribe: Ḥāj Khudā Bakhsh
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Herat
Layout: 17 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in brown leather, blind-stamped, with orange leather on edges.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked words and some underlining in red; some marginalia.

Box 5

Manuscript no. 39 Part one of the book for the guidance of the community / Part one of the book for the guidance of the community [16--]?

Physical Description: 214 leaves : paper ; 223 × 160 mm. bound to 223 × 167 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Shiite religious jurisprudence for common practice; written by multiple scribes.

Author: Ḥurr al-᾽āmilī, Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥasan, 1624-1693
Scribe: Muḥammad Ṣālih ibn Muḥammad Jẚfar
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia
Layout: 22 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in soft brown leather, with green leather on edges.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked words and some underlining in red; some marginalia. Occasional stains and ink smears. Title on lower fore-edge of text block.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 40 The book of the eminent selection / The book of the eminent selection [after 1640?]

Physical Description: 116 leaves : paper ; 182 × 115 mm. bound to 180 × 122 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Shiite jurisprudence concerning day-to-day issues.

Author: Fayḍ al-Kāshī, Muḥammad ibn Murtaḍá, 1598 or 9-1680 or 81
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia
Layout: 17 lines of text per page.
Script: Naskh.
Binding: Bound in soft brown leather, with green leather on edges.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked words and some underlining in red; some marginalia. insect and water damage. Title on lower edge of text block.

Box 4

Manuscript no. 41 [Commentary on the wine poem of al-Fāriẓḍá] / [Commentary on the wine poem of al-Fāriẓḍá] 1626 August

Physical Description: 40 leaves : paper ; 209 × 134 mm. bound to 210 × 135 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Jāmī's commentary on the Arabic poem of the Sufi poet Ibn al-Fāriḍ.

Author: Jāmī, 1414-1492
Scribe: Asad Allāh al-Ardalānī
Language: Text in Persian and Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia
Layout: 19 lines of text per page.
Script: Nastẚlīq.
Binding: Bound in brown leather, blind stamped, with red paste-downs.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked words, original verses, and some underlining in red; some water damage.

Box 5

Manuscript no. 42 [The exhaustive one] / [The exhaustive one] 1648 December

Physical Description: 233 leaves : paper ; 245 × 127 mm. bound to 247 × 135 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Taftāzānī's commentary on a work of Arabic rhetoric by Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Qazwīnī.

Author: [Taftāzānī, Mas᾽ūd ibn ᾽Umar, 1322-1389?]
Scribe: al-IṢfahānī (mostly erased)
Language: Text in Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid IṢfahān
Layout: 23 lines of text per page.
Script: Nastẚlīq.
Binding: Bound in brown leather, with black leather spine.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, underlining in red; extensive marginalia.

Box 6

Manuscript no. 43 Gardens of eternity / Gardens of eternity 1713 [chronogram]

Physical Description: 35 leaves : paper ; 415 × 255 mm. bound to 425 × 272 mm.

Scope and Content Note

Encyclopedic work of Ṣafavid times, dated by the chronogram of its title, which adds up to 1125 AH. Dedicated to Shah Sultan Husayn (1694- 1722), the work furnishes a survey of contemporary knowledge (religious, historical, geographical, medicinal, etc.).

Author: Khatūnābadī, Muḥammad Riẓā ibn Muḥammad Mu̓min, fl. 1715.
Language: Text in Persian and Arabic
Origin: Ṣafavid Persia
Layout: Average nine rows of text per page.
Script: Nastẚlīq.
Binding: Bound in black leather.
Additional descriptive data: Text in black ink, marked words or passages in red and blue; text contained in silver, red, and blue borders; leaves on brown, blue, green, pink, and purple paper.

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