An Examination of the Development of Early Zahriye Pages

Abstract

This article examines the formal and stylistic transformation of Qur’ān manuscript
and juz’ zahriye pages in Islamic book arts, from their earliest examples in the late
Umayyad and early Abbasid periods to the Ilkhanid–Mamluk era. The study comparatively
evaluates the emergence, function and aesthetic language of the zahriye through a
selection of manuscripts from the Umayyad, Abbasid, Maghribi, Seljuk, Ilkhanid and
Mamluk periods. The study’s corpus consists of manuscripts preserved in the collections
of the Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum, the Chester Beatty Library, the Topkapı Palace
Museum Library and the Metropolitan Museum of Art as well as exemplars published by
Alain George. The findings indicate that in the early period architectural elements and
simple geometric arrangements were predominant, whereas in the Abbasid period the
formal repertoire of zahriye expanded with the increased use of circular compositions,
self-contained geometric forms, rosettes and gold. In the Maghribi Qurʾān manuscripts of
the western Islamic world a distinctive decorative approach emerged and characterized
by square page formats, interlaced band systems and a vivid color palette. During the
Seljuk period, systematic geometric interlaces and symmetrical compositional schemes
became more pronounced while in the Ilkhanid and Mamluk periods the zahriye reached
their most developed and monumental forms through large-scale Qurʾān manuscripts
featuring wide borders and complex network-like geometric arrangements. The study
aims to evaluate the emergence and development of zahriye illumination within a more
comprehensive framework comparatively examining manuscript examples from different
periods and to highlight its place within the tradition of Islamic book arts.