**Originally Listed At $700**

Near East / Northeastern Africa, Ottoman Empire, ca. 19th century CE. A fascinating leather-bound book containing dozens of laid-paper pages of Islamic text, inscribed in black and red Arabic script. The last few pages are oriented upside-down from the rest of the book. Some pages have watermarks of a crescent moon with a face in a shield - a motif first used by Egyptian papermakers in 1868, then adopted by Sudanese papermakers in 1870, and also popular amongst 19th century Italian papermakers who marketed their goods throughout the Ottoman Empire. Other pages have watermarks of Arabic scrip, which was typically used by Ottoman papermakers. Size: 10.6" L x 2.6" W x 14.5" H (26.9 cm x 6.6 cm x 36.8 cm)

Provenance: Whisnant Gallery, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA acquired prior to 2000

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#169578

Tearing and losses to peripheries of pages and cover. Staining throughout. Some wrinkling to leather. Otherwise, excellent with impressively preserved ink and clear script. Some notes from previous owners throughout.