Muhaqqaq is one of the main six types of calligraphic script in Arabic.[John F. A. Sawyer, J. M. Y. Simpson, R. E. Asher (eds.), Concise Encyclopedia of Language and Religion, Elsevier, New York 2001, , p. 253.] The Arabic language word muḥaqqaq (محقَّق) means "consummate" or "clear", and originally was used to denote any accomplished piece of calligraphy.[Mansour, 139–140.]
Often used to copy maṣāḥif (singular muṣḥaf, i.e. loose sheets of Quran texts), this intricate type of script was considered one of the most beautiful, as well as one of the most difficult to execute well.[Mansour, 30.] The script saw its greatest use in the Mameluk era (1250–1516/1517).[Mansour, 278]
In the Ottoman Empire, it was gradually displaced by Thuluth and Naskh; from the 18th century onward, its use was largely restricted to the Basmala in .[Mansour, 187.]
History
The earliest reference to
muḥaqqaq writing is found in the
Kitab al-Fihrist by
Ibn al-Nadim, and the term was probably in use since the beginning of the
Abbasid era to denote a specific writing style.
[Mansour, 91.] Master calligraphers like
Ibn Muqla and
Ibn al-Bawwab contributed to the development of this and other scripts, and defined its rules and standards within Islamic calligraphy.
[Mansour, 20.]
Gallery
Khalili Collection Islamic Art qur 0087 fol 26b-27a.jpg|Double-page from the Qur'an in muhaqqaq dedicated to Abu’l-Qasim Harun ibn ‘Ali ibn Zafar, the vizier of Özbeg (r 1210–1225), the last Eldiguzids. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art
Folios 1b-2a from Part 15 of a 30-part Qur’an copied by Ya'qut al-Musta'simi in Baghdad 1282-1283 AD (681 AH).jpg|Double-page from the Qur'an in muhaqqaq copied by Yaqut al-Musta'simi. Baghdad, 1282/1283. Khalili Collection of Islamic Art
Double-page from the Ilkhanid Qur'an (TIEM 538, ff. 151b-152a).jpg|Double-page from the Qur'an in muhaqqaq copied by Ahmad al-Suhrawardi. Baghdad, 1307/1308. Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum
Opening double page from the Sultan Shaban's Qur'an (DK Masahif Rasid 10, ff. 2b-3a).jpg|Opening pages from the Qur'an in muhaqqaq copied by Ali ibn Muhammad al-Mukattib al-Ashrafi. Cairo, 1372. Egyptian National Library
Unknown, Central Asia, 15th Century - Page from Colossal Qur'an - Google Art Project.jpg|Page from the Qur'an in muhaqqaq copied for Timur by Umar Aqta. Samarkand, . Museum of Islamic Art, Doha
Album leaf from a Murakka by Hafiz Osman (MIK I.1985.11.1).jpg|Album Leaf from a Muraqqa by Hâfiz Osman with basmala in muhaqqaq (upper panel). Istanbul, 1693/1694. Museum of Islamic Art, Berlin
See also
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Arabic calligraphy
-
Islamic calligraphy
Notes
-
Nassar Mansour (author), Mark Allen (ed.): Sacred Script: Muhaqqaq in Islamic Calligraphy, I.B.Tauris & Co Ltd, New York 2011,
