Cleveland Museum of Art

Bookbinding for a Qur'an

Date

1460–1500

Medium

leather over paper pasteboards; outer cover tooled, blue paint; inner covers openwork designs over colored papers

Culture

Turkey, Istanbul, Ottoman period, 15th century

Department

Islamic Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

Islamic book covers generally have a triangular flap attached to the rear cover of the binding which is tucked under the front cover to protect the outside edge of the pages. The outer covers of this particularly elaborate example feature panels with Qur'anic inscriptions, interlace patterns, and a central medallion filled with floral and arabesque designs. The inner covers offer a superb example of leather openwork, a leather technique that originated in northeastern Iran in the 1400s.

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