Introduction to Manuscripts and Early Print
Moroccan
Qur’an manuscript page
Ink on paper
13 3/16 in x 8 7/8 in (33.5 cm x 22.5 cm);13 3/16 in x 8 7/8 in (33.5 cm x 22.5 cm)
Museum Purchase
English
Manuscript page from Oxford Bible (Dominican)
ink and tempera on vellum
7 3/4 in x 5 1/2 in (19.7 cm x 14 cm)
Gift of the Estate of Helen B. Hall
Florentine; Italian
MS leaf: Bifolio from a Missal
ink, tempera and gold on parchment
15 9/16 x 21 5/16 in. (39.5 x 54.1 cm);22 3/16 x 28 5/16 in. (56.2 x 71.76 cm)
Anonymous Gift in memory of Mrs. John Alexander
French
Illuminated Manuscript
ink and gold on parchment
6 1/2 in. x 4 1/2 in. ( 16.5 cm x 11.4 cm )
Gift of J. Frederick Hoffman
German
Illuminated Manuscript
ink and watercolor on vellum
5 in. x 3 in. ( 12.7 cm x 7.6 cm )
Gift of J. Frederick Hoffman
Indian
Palm Leaf from an Unidentified Manuscript with Devanagiri (?) script
incised palm-leaf darkened with coal dust
2 11/16 in x 11 in (6.8 cm x 28 cm)
Gift of Professor Walter M. and Nesta R. Spink
Turkish
Mohammedan Law, manuscript page
ink on egg-glazed paper
Museum Purchase
Italian; Venetian
Manuscript Leaf
ink on laid paper
13 5/8 in. (34.5 cm)
Anonymous Gift in memory of Mrs. John Alexander
Nepali
Devimahatmya manuscript page: The Goddess Ambika fights a host of demons
ink and opaque watercolor on paper
4 5/8 in. x 8 1/16 in. ( 11.75 cm x 20.48 cm )
Museum purchase, Acquisition Fund
Artist Unknown, India, Rajasthan, Sirohi School
A Demon Warrior Worships Devi
ink, watercolor, and gold on paper
5 in x 9 in (12.7 cm x 22.86 cm);14 in x 18 in (35.56 cm x 45.72 cm);5 in x 9 in (12.7 cm x 22.86 cm)
Gift of Professor Walter M. and Nesta R. Spink
Iranian
Decorative calligraphy, manuscript page
ink on paper
14 1/16 in. x 9 5/8 in. ( 35.75 cm x 24.4 cm )
Gift of Mr. Anand Krishna
Artist Unknown
Burmese Prayer Book with Manuscript Pages (total of 20 pages)
paper and paint on wood board
( )
Gift of the Estate of Anne L. McGrew
This portfolio takes a comparative approach to manuscript studies, textual studies, and book history. It includes manuscripts and early print texts from the Ottoman Empire, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Iran, and northern, western and southern Europe. Some use paper, others use an animal skin such as calf or sheepskin. Some are highly decorated with manuscript illuminations and stylized script, others are simply text.
Because of its geographic breadth, this portfolio is suitable to textual studies courses in a variety of fields. For courses on the history of the book, it provides a diverse range of manuscript quality, origin, purpose, and text. Taken altogether or in smaller groupings, it raises issues surrounding material culture, premodern historiography, and the production of texts more generally. The presence in this portfolio of manuscripts made well after the spread of the printing press also invites questions about the complex reasons people seek out handmade texts.