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Indo-persian dagger, damascus steel blade split into 3 diamond profile prongs.

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Ottoman mail and plate kolçak (greaves / shin armor) worn by fully armored cavalryman, 15th c. Persia

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inscriptions

The inscriptions include quotations from the Qur'an,chapters II (al-baqara), part of verse 137; XLVIII (al-fath) verse 3; XVII (al-isra’), part of verse 79; XIII (al-ra’d), part of verse 28; III (al-‘imran), part of verse 160 and invocations to God in mirrored form and the Beautiful Names of God (asma’ al-husna) in individual roundels and squares. They are written in a variety of styles (including thuluth, naskh, angular Kufic (ma’qali)), and different forms: large (jali), small (khafi), minute (ghubar), mirrored (muthanna); reserved against black or minute (ghubar) text and in many colours and sizes. Those in angular Kufic (in squares, octagons, bands and in colours or reserved against black) contain: the shahada; the names God and Muhammad (4 times); the names Muhammad and the four Orthodox Caliphs; ‘Praise be to God’ (4 times); Qur’an, chapter II (al-baqara), verse 255; CVII-CXIV (al-ikhlas, al-falaq, al-nas) and II (al-baqara), verse 285.

This is an unusual and finely executed Qur'an jama. The basic layout related to other jamas of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, with a large number of panels and roundels containing Qur'anic quotations, pious phrases, prayers and talismanic numbers, but here their arrangement is unusually varied and inventive, with a number of distinctly Ottoman features such as the architectural references on the reverse of the jama with a large door flanked by Kufic cartouches on two sides and tilework above. What is also particularly noteworthy is the accomplished quality of the calligraphy, which is executed in a number of different scripts, and retains a confident aesthetic in even its most minute form. The amalgamation of all the decorative and calligraphic styles is a technique visible on other comparable talismanic shirts including the jama of Cem Sultan (TKS13/1404, see Roxburgh 2005, pp.300-1, no.257) and that of Mehmed II (TKS13/1408, published in Palace of Gold and Light, Treasures from the Topkapi, exhib. cat, Istanbul, 2000, pp.66-69, no.A7).

The present shirt and its decoration relate to a group of Ottoman shirts now housed in the Topkapi Saray Museum which all date from the fifteenth to sixteenth centuries. 

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On the front:

Quotations from the Qur'an (often repeated), including Surah al-Baqarah (II), verse 255 (The Throne Verse, Ayat al-Kursi); Surah al-Nur (XXIV), verse 35; Surah Yasin  (XXXVI), verse 58; Surah al-Shura (XLII), verse 19; Surah al-Fath (XLVIII); Surah al-Kafirun (CIX); Surah al-Ikhlas (CXII);  Surah al-Nas (CXIV).

Prayers and invocations to God; including the Shahada;

Talismanic numbers or letters, some described, one as: 'seal of love, obedience, brotherhood'.

On the back: 

A large Sun disc, in the centre of which is the Qur'an, Surah al-Baqarah (II), verse 255 (The Throne Verse, Ayat al-Kursi), its rays are made up with the repetition of the Basmallah surrounded by twelve magic roundels. There are also two roundels with the name of the Caliph 'Uthman ibn 'Affan, one mentioning his collection of the text of the Qur'an.

This is a very unusual and finely executed Qur'an jama. The basic layout relates to other jamas of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, with a large number of panels and roundels containing Qur'anic quotations, pious phrases, prayers and talismanic numbers, but here their arrangement is unusually varied and inventive, and the palette is distinct from the more common use of orange and blue that features on most Indian jamas (for a typical example of the latter palette see sale in these rooms, 5 October 2010, lot 42). The most notable feature on the present example is the presence of images of the Two Holy Mosques of Mecca and Medina .This is exceptional - indeed it may be unique on jamas - and presumably adds an even higher level of protection to the wearer. The positioning of the two images is also pertinent, placed as they are on the chest, over the heart (al-sadr). Another remarkable feature is the presence of two gilded and finely illuminated panels on the shoulder, which extend around the circular band round the neck. Again, these panels may be unique in the context of Qur'an jamas and, along with the images of Mecca and Medina, indicate that this jama was made for a high-ranking official or perhaps a prince. Its place of origin is hinted at by the specific design of the illuminated shoulder panels, which can be linked to Deccani work of the sixteenth century. Thus it is plausible that this talismanic garment was made for a prince of the Qubt-Shahis of Golconda or the Adil Shahis of Bijapur, dynasties both noted for the exquisite quality of their paintings, calligraphy and illumination.

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Sword of Mehmed II The Conqueror (1432-1481)

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The Al-Ma’thur Sword

Al-Ma’thur, also known as “Ma’thur al-Fijar” is the sword which was owned by the prophet Muhammad before he received his first revelations in Mecca. It was willed to him by his father. The prophet Muhammad migrated with the sword from Mecca to Medina, and the sword remained with him until it was transferred, along with other war equipment, to Ali b. Abi Talib.

The blade is 99 cm in length. The handle is of gold in the shape of two serpents, and is encrusted with emeralds and turquoise. Near the handle is a Kufic inscription saying: ‘Abdallah b. ‘Abd al-Muttalib. Today the sword is housed in the Topkapi Museum, Istanbul. 

Info souce: USNA 

Photo source: Photograph taken from Muhammad Hasan Muhammad al-Tihami, Suyuf al-Rasul wa ‘uddah harbi-hi (Cairo: Hijr, 1312/1992)

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Bear Paw Armor Cuprum Arm Guard, Indo Persian Islamic Empire Dynasty

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This helmet bears the name of the Mamluk sultan Ibn Qala’un, who ruled from Cairo a century before Barquq, the sultan who appointed and dismissed Ibn Khaldun as chief justice on several occasions.