Chinese Qur'an - Quran Chapter Bi-folio - 1760

A bi-foio from an 18th Century Chinese Qur'an (circa 1760), which contains scripture from the transition between chapter 29, al-Ankabut (The Spider), v.67-68 and the chapter 30, ar-Rum (The Romans), with its heading in gold thuluth, together with the opening basmala.

Verses 66-68 of Surah Al-'Ankabut (Chapter 29) address the ingratitude of humanity toward God when faced with His blessings. They specifically contrast the temporary, deceptive comforts of worldly life with the severe ultimate consequences of rejecting the divine truth.

It is written in elegant Muhaqqaq script, characterised by bold left leaning extended upstrokes of the pen, well-spaced ligatures, and shallow and sweeping horizontal sublinear flourishes. It is 'meticulously produced' as the name implies. During the caliphate of al Ma'mun (813-833) it became the preferred style of the Warraqun (professional scribes) to enable relatively easy reproduction. It also suggests the brush strokes associated with Chinese calligraphy, and is often referred to as sini (Chinese) Arabic. The red diacritical marks are Qur'anic recitation typical of Ilkhanid or Yuan-era manuscripts produced for Muslim communities in China. Gold 'aya' mark the specific verses.

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