Exploring Techniques Used in Timurid Manuscripts -
With Pen and Penknife
Æsa feilinn Jossursdottir
01-Mar-2025
Overview
The purpose of this project is to explore the techniques used in late Timurid arts through the recreation of two folios from Divan of Sultan Husayn Mirza.
Definitions:
Ahar paper (ورق مقهر) - Also called muqahar paper. The paper is made from natural material (mulberry, banana fibers, rags, silk, linen, etc) that is usually dyed. The paper is then treated with a starch and alum mixture. It is then burnished to give it a smooth, glossy finish. This process lets the ink sit on top of the paper making it easier to “erase” mistakes simply with water.
Divan or diwan (ديوان) - a collection of poems by one author
Nasta’liq (نستعلیق) - Regional calligraphy hand developed for Persian, Urdu, and some Ottoman Turkish poetry originating from Central Asia. Its creation was attributed to Mir Ali Tabrizi in the 14th C, but more likely evolved from the naskh script. This script was primarily used for poetry and as a form of art in the 14th-16th C. The script is characterized by sweeping curves and natural angles when writing the letters.
Qalam (قلم) - A reed pen used in Arabic calligraphy. The nib can be cut straight or at an oblique angle similar to a quill pen. Arabic calligraphy is written right to left.
Qat’ (قتا'ی) - Literally meaning “cutting out”, it is a paper cut-out technique. Qata’i is translated as decoupage (from the French découper, meaning “to cut out”). This involves cutting the letters/script out and pasting it onto another paper background, usually of a contrasting color.
Background
The Timurid Empire was founded by Timur (also known as Timur the Lame, Tamerlane, or Tamburlaine,) around 1370 which lasted through the early 1500s until the rise of the Safavid Empire and Mughal Empire. At its height, the Timurid Empire encompassed the area of modern day Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Turkey, parts of central Asia including Pakistan, northern India, the Transoxiana region (Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan), and the South Caucasus region (modern day Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan). Timur and his successors were of a Turko-Mongol lineage; ruling Mongol elite who adopted Islam, the use of the Turkic languages, and retained the legal and political practices of the Mongols. The Tumirids also incorporated aspects of Persian culture into their own such as literature and the arts. Craftsmen and artisans were spared from the massacres of Timur’s conquests and sent back to his capital in Samarkand; a practice continued by his successors. This focus and patronage of the arts is seen during the later part of the Timurid Renaissance (14th - early 16th C), and especially under the rule of Sultan Husayn Bayqara Mirza (1438-1506) in Herat.
Map of Timurid Empire at its height (~1405) with modern country borders. Modern country names were added in black. Does not show vassal regions which extend west to Egypt and east to central India.
About Paper, Paper-cutting, and Qata’i
Though popular mythology puts the creation of paper to China 105 CE by Cai Lun, it is speculated that it was created much earlier than that. There is evidence of thin paper found in a Chinese tomb dating to 200 BCE Paper made from rags and plant fibers such as hemp, bamboo, and mulberry made its way to Central Asia via trade along the Silk Road. Chinese paper-cutting, called jiǎnzhǐ (剪紙), was prevalent in the Tang dynasty (618 to 907 CE) as an artform, but possibly created earlier. Paper-cutting became more prevalent as paper became more affordable. This lead to its widespread growth and it becoming a cultural art form that is practiced to this day.
Papyrus and later parchment were the dominant materials used for writing in Central Asia until the 7th C. You can see the progression of material used by going through the centuries as well as the progression of the scripts used from the early 7th C (Sasanian Empire through the Islamic conquest), the Mongol conquest in the 12th C, through the end of the Timurid Empire in the 15th C. Papyrus is not very durable and early manuscripts in good condition are rare. A paper making factory was established in Baghdad in 796 by the ruling caliphate and another notable factory was established in Damascus in the 10th C. Paper in Central Asia was from linen and hemp, with mulberry paper still being imported from China. The 12th C saw paper from the Islamic world being sent to Italy and Spain, and from there to the rest of Europe.
While visiting the National Museum of Asian Art in January 2025, I joined a curator’s tour for the exhibit the Epic of Kings: the Great Mongol Shahnama which detailed a particular version of the epic. On the tour, the curator mentioned that during the time of the Ilkhanids (1256-1353) there was a lot of assimilation between the Mongols and the Persians. The theme of borrowing ideas as well as trade goods was stressed throughout the tour and in supplemental documentation for the exhibit. This adoption of ideas along with the moving of trade goods was also mentioned in the Silk Roads exhibition at the British Museum. When you look a little later into the 1300s farther along the trade routes, there is a notable manuscript in France that incorporates paper-cutting and at least two more later in the 17th century. While not the only example of the paper-cutting during the 1400s, the Divan is perhaps one of the most notable in Central Asia.
About the Exemplar:
The source for the project is a folio from the Divan (1490) of Sultan Hasayn Bayqara, which is a collection of his poetry. Sultan Hasayn Bayqara, also known as Sultan Hasayn Bayqara Mirza, (ruled 1470-1506) in Herat during the late Timurid period. This work is housed at the Freer Gallery of Art which is part of the Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art in Washington D.C. The museum placard notes that the manuscript used the following materials: ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper. It also mentions that the letters and words are cut from colored paper and were placed on the background paper using decoupage (qata’i). The script is noted as nasta’liq and the text is in Turkish.
Another page from the Divan is at the Brooklyn Museum in Brooklyn, New York. This piece is also identified as being from the book of poetry from Sultan Hasayn Bayqara Mirza (he is noted here as Sultan Husayn Mirza). The placard cites the same materials, but also goes further to identify the paper as being dyed with indigo. It also attributes the work to noted calligrapher Sultan 'Ali Mashhadi (1442-1519), a prolific master calligrapher known for his distinct nasta’liq script and a member of Sultan Hasayn Bayqara’s court in Herat. Again the text on this page is noted as being written in Turkish and done using decoupage.
A copy of the Divan is on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art at their Met 5th Avenue location in New York, NY. It also attributes the book to calligrapher Sultan 'Ali Mashhadi and notes that the calligraphy was done using nasta’liq script. No mention of decoupage is noted and upon visible inspection the calligraphy appears to be done using traditional written means.
The folio used as the exemplar for this project has the following dimensions: H x W: 23.8 x 15 cm (9 ⅜ x 5 ⅞ in).
Specific Project Overview
It should be noted that I do not read Arabic or Turkish and I am working as a copyist. I frequently collaborate with scribes who act as translators and are of the culture I am researching and creating scrolls from. I approached this project like all scrolls I have done for the East; with admiration, research, listening to the voices of those represented here, and being mindful that I am a guest in their space and treat the source materials with respect. I am still learning and always striving to do better.
I have created two folios:
Folio 1 - A 1:1 scale reproduction of the Divan folio. The calligraphy is done in gold ink using a reed qalam. The script is nasta'liq and reproduced as closely to the original as possible. The calligraphy was written right to left as is traditional for Arabic calligraphy. The illumination was painted using natural hair brushes and handmade pigments color-matched to those used in period. Multiple light layers of paint were done to achieve the opacity of the color without saturating the paper and causing it to buckle. The blue dyed, high cotton content paper is a close color match to modern indigo dyed ahar paper. Mica gold paint and a fan brush were used to create the “gold sprinkle” page decoration seen on the original.
Folio 2 - A 1:1 scale reproduction of the Divan folio. The calligraphy is done by decoupage. Two sheets of natural mulberry paper were glued together, cut out using various small knives and cutting implements. These pieces of paper were then glued to a blue dyed, high cotton content paper using a starch based glue.
Materials
* Made by Archangel Arts Pigments and Palettes (Baron Konstantia Kaloethina, Kingdom of Calontir)
The colors found in a selection of manuscripts from the area starting the 13th C through the creation of this manuscript are all noted as being minerals or pigments from the earth (ochres). There is a distinct lack of lake pigments used on manuscripts from this region and time period. The non-earth pigments have some level of toxicity to them notably due to arsenic, lead, and mercury components. The green pigments all look to be forms of copper green (verdigris, malachite, etc).
Substitutions were primarily made due to cost, toxicity of period materials, and availability. The ongoing agreement in my house is I will not use anything a small mammal might accidentally ingest and get sick if left unattended for 5 minutes. Anything noted to be toxic was made outside of the house by others and then secured in a locked container.
In this period, products such as paper or pigments were purchased directly from other merchants rather than made by the calligrapher. Top painters, like Sultan 'Ali Mashhadi, would work for the court and the elite rulers. Apprentices and less skilled artisans provided support to a more experienced or master artisan. While I am not a master calligrapher, I decided that I would emulate Mashhadi’s example by supporting our artisans and buy finished products where it would be inefficient for me to make items myself. As someone of a noble rank and royal peer, this would be entirely expected for my persona to do.
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