They relied on the beauty of calligraphy, gilding, and ornamentation... The great Noble Qur’ans of the Arab and Islamic worlds: language, splendor, and majesty.
Ahwal Al-Ma'rifa – Special
Islamic heritage has brought us thousands of handwritten copies of the Holy Qur’an, now distributed among libraries and museums throughout the Islamic world. These manuscripts feature diverse forms of writing and ornamentation in various Arabic calligraphic styles. They also contain numerous floral, botanical, and calligraphic decorations, in addition to a wide range of vivid and gilded colors. This reflects the great artistic diversity found in the writing of the Holy Qur’an, its verses, and its surahs.
With the development of printing technologies and the spread of Arabic calligraphy schools, some centers dedicated to writing the Holy Qur’an began producing distinctive collections of Qur’anic manuscripts, alongside the individual efforts of prominent calligraphers throughout the Arab and Islamic world. As a result, we have come to see the largest written Qur’an, the longest Qur’an, and Qur’ans distinguished by an abundance of calligraphic styles and ornamentation.
Among the enormous Qur’anic manuscripts considered among the largest of their kind in the world is a Qur’an housed at the Holy Qur’an Museum in the Hira Cultural District in Makkah. It measures (312 × 220) cm and consists of 700 pages. The museum has received a Guinness World Records certificate recognizing it as the largest Qur’an in the world.
This Qur’an is an enlarged reproduction of a historical Qur’an dating back to the 10th century AH (16th century CE). Its original dimensions were (45 × 30) cm. Its surahs were written in Thuluth script, while Surah Al-Fatihah was written in Naskh script, reflecting an artistic choice that demonstrates the precision and beauty of calligraphic variation during that period. The Qur’an is considered a unique example of the arts of Arabic calligraphy, illumination, and bookbinding. Features of Islamic art can be seen in its intricate decorations, the sun-shaped motifs on the floral page, and the opening and title pages.
Another major distinctive Qur’an is the Qur’an of Damascus, which is displayed in the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, Syria. Each page is approximately 250 cm high and 155 cm wide. It took approximately 17 to 20 years to complete, with dozens of calligraphers from different countries participating in its writing.
Over a period of six years, Iraqi calligrapher Ali Zaman, who resides in Istanbul, handwritten and decorated a Qur’an measuring 4 meters in length and 1.5 meters in width. He worked on it every day immediately after the Fajr prayer, without interruption, beginning in 2020 CE. The Qur’an is in the form of a scroll measuring 208 meters in length and 1.15 meters in width, weighing 86 kilograms, and it has been displayed at several art exhibitions.
An Egyptian calligrapher named Saad Muhammad spent three years writing what he hoped would become the largest Qur’an in the world. Although he left school while in the fifth grade, he was determined to develop his skills and knowledge. Ultimately, he produced what could be the largest handwritten copy of the Holy Qur’an, reaching a length of 700 meters.
An Afghan calligrapher also completed a large copy of the Holy Qur’an after working on it for five years. The Qur’an’s pages measure 2.28 meters in length and 1.55 meters in width, while the Afghan Qur’an weighs 500 kilograms and contains 218 pages. It is made of paper and fabric, while its cover is made of goatskin and decorated with raised engravings. Its cost reached half a million dollars.
The Afghan Ministry of Hajj and Religious Affairs stated that it was the largest copy in the world at the time it was written several years ago, according to the Kabul Cultural Center, where the Qur’an is displayed. The title of the largest Qur’an in the world had previously belonged to a copy measuring 2 meters in length and 1.5 meters in width, which was unveiled in Russia’s Tatarstan region. The Qol Sharif Mosque in the Kazan Kremlin houses a huge Qur’an adorned with semi-precious stones and gold, weighing 800 kilograms.
Footnotes:
https://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2012%2F01%2F18%2F189069
