Islamic Art

The Istanbul Mushaf: A Masterpiece of Islamic Art Across Time

The Istanbul Mushaf: A breathtaking Quran manuscript blending diverse Islamic art styles, history, and unparalleled craftsmanship.

Goldframer

23 Dec 2024 — 5 min read

Ağıt Erdi Ulukaya/AA, Courtesy of Anadolu Ajansı

"The Istanbul Mushaf" is a profound work of Islamic art that integrates centuries of artistic traditions into a single, unified masterpiece. Created under the guidance of Hüseyin Kutlu, this extraordinary project involved 66 skilled artisans, and stands as a testament to the rich beauty of Islamic art and its development through centuries.

The Concept of a Mushaf

In Islamic tradition, the term "mushaf" refers to a written or printed copy of the Quran, often characterized by its detailed calligraphy and artistic embellishments. The Istanbul Mushaf is a modern representation of this form, bringing together various styles of Islamic art that have evolved over different historical periods since the time of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH.)

The Istanbul Mushaf as a Journey Through Islamic Art History

The Istanbul Mushaf is unique with its way of bringing together artistic influences from ten distinct periods of Islamic history. Each volume (or "cilt") of the Mushaf features a different style of binding, cover art, and decorative elements, each of which is inspired by the respective period it represents.

The ten periods represented by The Istanbul Mushaf are as follows:

Volume 1: The mushaf begins with the Asr-ı Saadet period, covering the Umayyad, Abbasid, Great Seljuk, Ghaznavid, Anatolian Seljuk, First Anatolian Beyliks, and Ayyubid dynasties.
Volume 2: The Mamluk period
Volume 3: The Andalusian and Maghreb regions
Volume 4: The Ilkhanid period
Volume 5: The Akkoyunlu and Karakoyunlu Turkmen dynasties
Volume 6: The Timurid period
Volume 7: The Delhi Sultanate and the Mughal Empire
Volume 8: The Safavid dynasty
Volume 9: The Second Anatolian Beyliks and the Ottoman Empire up to the 16th century
Volume 10: The Ottoman era from the 16th century to the 21st century

This approach not only honors the artistic achievements of each era but also creates a visual and spiritual journey for the reader, connecting them with the history of Islamic art through a chronological display. This unique quality makes each page its own art piece with a distinctive display of aesthetic and artisanship.

Artistic Inspiration from Across the Islamic World

The blending of styles in The Istanbul Mushaf showcases the diversity and richness of Islamic art, making this manuscript both a spiritual text and a global artistic treasure. For example, the first volume starts with an artistic decision made to honor the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH,) in whose time traditional Tazhib, or Islamic illumination, did not yet exist.

Faced with the challenge of deciding what to include on the zahriye page (the page in manuscripts found just behind the first page where the main text starts, meaning "back cover,") the artists chose to depict the Prophet’s (PBUH) cloak (Hırka-i Saadet). They meticulously illustrated the exact braids found on the cloak that is now in Topkapı Palace, incorporating these details into the manuscript’s design. The verse markers, or “durak”, are shaped like the buttons of the cloak, while the zencirek (Interlocking rings drawn along the page edges of manuscript books or panels) motifs mirror the patterns on the cloak itself.

Another fascinating aspect of The Istanbul Mushaf is its use of diverse calligraphic styles. The calligraphy is complemented by various geometric patterns, floral motifs, and arabesques, all meticulously illuminated with gold and vibrant colors. These decorative elements work to both enhance the visual appeal of the manuscript and reflect the deep reverence with which the Quran is regarded in Islamic culture.

Craftsmanship, Dimensions, and Materials

The Istanbul Mushaf measures 365mm by 550mm. The masterpiece consists of 854 pages of hand-written calligraphy, created under the patronage of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The manuscript features 11 distinct script styles, including Kufic and Maghribi, and showcases exquisite design elements including 295 border patterns, 104 chapter headings, 16 fully decorated pages, 20 concluding decorations, 208 chain motifs, and 1001 verse markers.

Creating The Istanbul Mushaf involved extensive experimentation with different types of paper to ensure longevity. The artisans tested how various papers aged over time, and decided to produce their own upon noticing the fragility of most paper they tested. In doing so, they used a combination of traditional and modern techniques, and the paper used in the Mushaf was made to last longer, symbolizing the timeless nature of the Quran's message.

The ink and paints used in the manuscript were also handcrafted by the artisans, ensuring that every aspect of the Mushaf was of the highest quality. What makes The Istanbul Mushaf even more unique is the symbolic use of materials from sacred sites: Palm bark from Mecca, rose branches from Medina, olive branches from Jerusalem, and many other organic materials from the different holy sites of Islam were ground and mixed into the paper pulp. Kutlu refers to this process as “fiili dua”, meaning “prayer through action”, and underlines that this was done to symbolically unite the hearts of the Muslim Ummah.

Cultural Significance

The Istanbul Mushaf also signifies a revival of the traditional "nakkaşhane" workshops of the Ottoman Empire, where Ottoman artists and artisans collaborated until the 18th century to produce some of the most exquisite works of Islamic art. In his interviews, Kutlu refers multiple times to this lost tradition of artistic workshops that used to bring together artists with expertise in different areas, and his team’s efforts to bring it back to life through both their working methods and artistry. He mentions the extraordinary collective effort of the 66 artists that have worked on The Istanbul Mushaf, noting that this collaboration is reminiscent of the Ottoman nakkaşhane tradition.

Each page of The Istanbul Mushaf has been crafted with the mushaf’s potential cultural effect in mind. While the manuscript as a whole forms a unified masterpiece, each page also constitutes a distinct piece of art, showcasing new tazhib and calligraphy on each page. This makes flipping through and reading The Istanbul Mushaf into an extraordinary cultural experience, allowing for the appreciation of dozens of unique displays and combinations of written and visual arts with each turn of the page.

This layered artistry present within the mushaf has also been supported with the artists’ efforts to reflect the same art on the facsimiles. The team, who had produced the paper, ink, and binding by themselves, also decided to specially develop their own facsimile printing technique to be used in the printing of the 1000 fascimiles of the mushaf. Kutlu underlines in many of his interviews that their method of reproduction has proved incredibly successful, resulting in facsimiles that one cannot tell apart from the original without expert opinion.

Concluding Remarks

The Istanbul Mushaf is a modern masterpiece that encapsulates the rich history and diversity of Islamic art. From its handcrafted paper to its symbolic use of materials from sacred sites, every aspect of it reflects the deep spiritual and cultural significance of the Holy Quran. This project honors the traditions of the past while also ensuring that the beauty and artistry of Islamic manuscripts will continue to inspire and unite Muslims around the world for generations to come.

Sources: