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In the second half of the fifteenth century
Shiraz was part of the Aq-Qoyunlu Sultanate, whose capital was Tabriz.
Shah Isma'il 1 (1502-24) defeated the last Aq-Qoyunlu armies in the early
years of the sixteenth century, entering their capital Tabriz, which he
adopted as his own, in 1502. The following year he occupied Shiraz, though
the city was in the hands of Turkoman governors, for another eighty years,
as Isma'il made llyas Zul-Qadir governor of Shiraz.
A large number of manuscripts were
associated with western Iran in this period, particularly illustrated copies
of the Iranian national epic, the Shah Namah and the Khamsah of Nazami.
Quite a number of these manuscripts were signed and dated by their scribes
enabling us to trace their careers across several decades. Na'im al-Din
ibn Sadr al-Din, was one of these scribes, whose background combined the
traditions of both scribe and illuminator. Na'im al-Din was most probably
the father of Ruzbihan, the calligrapher/illuminator of Chester Beatty
Ms 1558. The illumination of Qur'an in the Iran-Bastan Museum, copied in
929/1523 by Pir Muhammad al-Thani, was undertaken by Ruzbihan, who completed
it the following year signing it Ruzbihan ibn Hajji Na'im al-Din Katib
Mudhahhib, i.e., Ruzbihan the illuminator, son of Na'im al-Din the scribe.
If this relationship is correct, and there is no reason to think otherwise,
then Ruzbihan followed in the footsteps of his grandfather Sadr al-Din
Mudhahhib, who as his name indicates, was also an illuminator. The information
is contained in the colophon of a Shah-Namah dated 898/1492-3 now in the
collection of Prince Sadrudin Aga Khan. According to custom, Ruzbihan would
have been his father's apprentice and have been taught both by him and
his grandfather if the latter were still alive.
The earliest dated example of Ruzbihan's work
is the Iran-Bastan manuscript, dated 1524, but this represents a developed,
accomplished style: the painter must have begun work long before that date.
He continued to work until at least 1547, as there is a Qur'an in the Astan-i
Quds Library, Mashhad, signed by him in that year. This gives him a working-life
of around half a century. As his father is known to have produced at least
fourteen manuscripts during the years between 1481 and 1509-10 Ruzbihan
must have copied and illuminated far more than the four manuscripts signed
by him. These are simply the only known examples of what was obviously
a substantial ouvre.
The copyist of the manuscript, Ruzbihan Muhammad
Tab'i Shirazi is known to have worked on six manuscripts, in two of these
manuscripts he refers to himself as a mudhahhib. But four of the
manuscripts bearing his name were unquestionably decorated by him. Although
it has not been possible to examine the fifth one, in Mashhad, that too
was probably illuminated by him, these six manuscripts are :
- 1 A
two-volume of Kulliyat of Sa'di. Bodleian Library, Oxford, Ms. Fraser
73 (Ethe 687). The manuscript is updated but was copied in the asitanah.
(Foundation), of Mawlana Hadrat Husam al-Din Ibrahim. The illumination
at the front of Volume 1 is signed: by the slave Ruzbihan the illuminator
(al-Mudhahhib) . He could also have been the copyist.
- 2 A
Qur'an, Iran-Bastan Museum Tehran, (Bayani 1949, No 79). Signed
and dated by the calligrapher Pir Muhammad al-Thani in 929/1523, and signed
by Ruzbihan ibn Hajji Na'im a]-Katib Mudhahhib on the illumination and
also apparently at the end after the fal-namah. Dated by him 930/1524,1186
folios, 29 x 18 cm.
- 3 A
Qur'an, Nour collection, London/Zurich,
Ms 60. The manuscript is undated but signed, Ruzbihan Muhammad Tab'i Shirazi
383 folios, 32 x 20 cm.
- 4 A
Qur'an, Astan-i Quds Library, Mashhad,
(Ma'ani 1347 no 86): signed Ruzbihan, dated 954/1547, 408 folios, 28 x
18 cm.
- 5 A
Qur'an of which only the frontispiece
survives. This was formerly in the Vever Collection, Paris and is now in
the Sackler Gallery, Washington, Ms S86, 0082-4, (Lowry 1987, Nos 2 and
3). The design is identical to that of the Chester Beatty manuscript. Only
the colours have been somewhat rearranged, 42.4 x 26.9 cm.
- 6 A
Qu'ran, Chester Beatty Library, Ms 1588,
(Arbery 1962, 156). The manuscript is undated but is signed Ruzbihan Muhammad
al-Tab'i al-Shirazi, who stated that he was responsible for the copying
(tahrir) and the illumination (tarqim), 445 folios, 42.7
x 29 cm.
He was also a copyist: four of the above were
written out of him according to their colophons. The Chester Beatty Qur'an
however shows that Ruzbihan was no mere 'scribe', but a calligrapher of
outstanding ability. We are therefore probably justified in identifying
him with the 'Mawlana Ruzbihan' mentioned in the treatise of Qadi Ahmad
which was written in 1596-7 and contains the biographies of many earlier
16th century Iranian calligraphers'. According to the author, Mawlana Ruzbihan
was calligrapher of Shiraz and together with several masters wrote many
local architectural inscriptions, some of which were still in existence
in Qadi Ahmad's day. Ruzbihan must undoubtedly have illustrated other literary
works and it is reasonable to expect that one or more of them will be discovered
at some future stage. Should any contain miniatures, it will be possible
to compare them with the frontispiece of the Bodleian manuscript and compare
the styles. If they are identical, we will have all the proof we need.
The style is very distinctive one, so identification will not be difficult.
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