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A page from a blue Qur’an
(صفحة من مصحف أزرق)

Title	A page from a blue Qur’an
Title Original	صفحة من مصحف أزرق
Publication Date:	Third - fourth century AH / second half of the ninth century - mid-tenth century AD
Publication Place	Probably Qayrawan, Tunisia - Metropolitan Museum of Art
Subject	Gold and silver on indigo-dyed parchment
Type	Other
Language	Undetermined
Digital	Yes
Manuscript	Yes
Physical Dimensions	الارتفاع : 30.4 سم العرض : 40.2 سم
Library:	Museum With No Frontiers
Library Asset ID	2004.88
Record ID	object;EPM;us;Mus23;48;ar
Library Location	Metropolitan Museum of Art
Date	Third - fourth century AH / second half of the ninth century - mid-tenth century AD
Notes	This page comes from a blue Qur’an, which is so named because of the rich color level of the indigo-dyed surface. Parchment dyeing for use in fine manuscripts originated in the Byzantine world and continued until the beginning of the Islamic era. The gold and silver ink of the Kufi blades and the circular verse marks add to the richness of this page. While many researchers believe that this Qur’an originates from Kairouan in Tunisia, the details in the verse markings in it indicate that it may have actually been written in Umayyad Cordoba. However, the description of the manuscript with the same specifications on this page that appears in the list of contents of Kairouan in 693 AH / 1293 AD indicates that it was part of the mosque’s holdings at that time.
Sample Text	“A page from a blue Qur’an” within Discover Islamic Art Collections. Museum Without Borders, 2026. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;EPM;us;Mus23;48;ar
Bu sayfanın künyesi	MWNF Working Number: US3 48
Seçili bibliyografya	Carboni, Stefano, "The Arts of the Fatimid Period at the Metropolitan Museum of Art,"The Ismaili, (2008): 4, ill. fig. 1 (colour).Carboni, Stefano, Haidar, Navina and Ekhtiar, Maryam, "Recent Acquistions: A Selection 2003–2004",Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, 62/ 2 (Fall 2004): 10, ill.Ekhtiar, Maryam, Canby, Sheila R., Haidar, Navina and Soucek, Priscilla P. (eds),Masterpieces from the Department of Islamic Art in The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2011: 54, 58–59, no. 30, ill. 59 (colour).Ekhtiar, Maryam,How to Read Islamic Calligraphy, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2018: 2, 78-79.Ettinghausen, Richard, Grabar, Oleg and Jenkins-Madina, Marilyn,Islamic Art and Architecture, 650–1250, New Haven/London: Yale University Press, 2003: 98–99, 312.Imbrey, Jai (ed),Mosques: Splendors of Islam, New York: Rizzoli, 2017: 40, ill.

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Museum With No Frontiers

A page from a blue Qur’an

(صفحة من مصحف أزرق)

Publication Date Third - fourth century AH / second half of the ninth century - mid-tenth century AD

Publication Place Probably Qayrawan, Tunisia - Metropolitan Museum of Art

Subject Gold and silver on indigo-dyed parchment

Type Other

Language Undetermined

Digital Yes

Manuscript Yes

Physical Dimensions الارتفاع : 30.4 سم العرض : 40.2 سم

Library Museum With No Frontiers

Library Asset ID 2004.88

Record ID object;EPM;us;Mus23;48;ar

Library Location Metropolitan Museum of Art

Date Third - fourth century AH / second half of the ninth century - mid-tenth century AD

Notes This page comes from a blue Qur’an, which is so named because of the rich color level of the indigo-dyed surface. Parchment dyeing for use in fine manuscripts originated in the Byzantine world and continued until the beginning of the Islamic era. The gold and silver ink of the Kufi blades and the circular verse marks add to the richness of this page. While many researchers believe that this Qur’an originates from Kairouan in Tunisia, the details in the verse markings in it indicate that it may have actually been written in Umayyad Cordoba. However, the description of the manuscript with the same specifications on this page that appears in the list of contents of Kairouan in 693 AH / 1293 AD indicates that it was part of the mosque’s holdings at that time.

Sample Text “A page from a blue Qur’an” within Discover Islamic Art Collections. Museum Without Borders, 2026. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;EPM;us;Mus23;48;ar

Bu sayfanın künyesi MWNF Working Number: US3 48

Seçili bibliyografya Carboni, Stefano, "The Arts of the Fatimid Period at the Metropolitan Museum of Art,"The Ismaili, (2008): 4, ill. fig. 1 (colour).Carboni, Stefano, Haidar, Navina and Ekhtiar, Maryam, "Recent Acquistions: A Selection 2003–2004",Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, 62/ 2 (Fall 2004): 10, ill.Ekhtiar, Maryam, Canby, Sheila R., Haidar, Navina and Soucek, Priscilla P. (eds),Masterpieces from the Department of Islamic Art in The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2011: 54, 58–59, no. 30, ill. 59 (colour).Ekhtiar, Maryam,How to Read Islamic Calligraphy, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2018: 2, 78-79.Ettinghausen, Richard, Grabar, Oleg and Jenkins-Madina, Marilyn,Islamic Art and Architecture, 650–1250, New Haven/London: Yale University Press, 2003: 98–99, 312.Imbrey, Jai (ed),Mosques: Splendors of Islam, New York: Rizzoli, 2017: 40, ill.