Collection of Poems (Divan)

Description Walters manuscript W.650 is an illuminated and illustrated Mughal copy of a collection of poems (divan) by the eminent poet and hagiographer of Islamic India, Hasan Dihlavi (died ca. 729 AH/AD 1328). It was written in Nasta'liq script by 'Abd Allah Mushkin Qalam (Amber-Scented Pen) in Allahabad in 1011 AH/AD 1602, according to the colophon on fol. 187a. A celebrated royal calligrapher, Abd Allah Mushkin Qalam worked in Allahabad for Prince Salim, who later became the Mughal Emperor Jahangir. The manuscript opens with a double-page illuminated incipit (fols. 2b-3a) and is illustrated with 14 paintings, including a portrait of the calligrapher himself (fol. 187a). The lacquer binding has intricate all-over illumination in which the main element is a pattern of gold strapwork with floral motifs, attributable to the 13th century AH/AD 19th.

Exhibitions

• The Grand Mogul: Imperial Painting in India, 1600-1900. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore; The Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, Williamstown; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Boston; Asia House Gallery, New York. 1978-1979.
• The Art of the Book in India. British Library, London. 1982.
• Illuminated Manuscripts: Masterpieces in Miniature. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. 1984-1985.
• Elephants. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. 1987-1988.
• Mything Persons: Historic Figures in Legends of East and West. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. 1998.
• The Saint John's Bible: A Modern Vision through Medieval Methods. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. 2009.

Provenance Henry Walters, Baltimore [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.

Credit Acquired by Henry Walters