Qur'an, manuscript in Arabic.- Ethiopian Qur'an, copied by 'Abd Allah Lalmas, manuscript on lightly burnished laid Italian paper, with tre lune marks, 278ff., 15 lines of Ifriqi script per page, within double-ruled red frames, rubrication and sura headings in red, 1v-2r with elaborate penwork frames in black, red, and yellow, different recitations intermittently noted in margins, text block slightly trimmed, light soiling, occasional damp-staining to lower margin, some marginal chipping or short tears to ff. at end, often repaired, a few times running into text but without loss, a few ff. loose at end, contemporary blind-stamped goat with flap, numerous repairs and renewals but original sewing and headbands intact, folio (306 x 200mm.), [Ethiopia, most likely Harar], 15 Jumada II 1270 AH [15 March 1854 CE].

⁂ A signed and dated Qur'an manuscript from the Muslim city of Harar in Ethiopia, notable especially for its unusual penwork decoration, incorporating floral and geometric motifs with originality. The hand, mise-en-page, use of Italian export paper, and colour palette are all characteristic of the city's scribal tradition - for comparison, see the collection of Qur'an manuscripts now held by the Sherif Harar City Museum. The penwork decoration on the opening pages is remarkably inventive. The colophon suggests that the scribe may have been a rather young man - he implores God's mercy both for himself and, unusually, for his parents. Loosely inserted at the front is a clipped description of this manuscript from a Dawson's Book Shop catalogue of 1940.