Ḥadīs̲-i arbaʻīn, [16th century?].

Fine copy of Jāmī's verse paraphrase of forty ḥadīth.Origin: Lacks dated scribal colophon ; decoration, hand, paper, etc. would suggest 16th century.Former shelfmark: "400 T. De M. [i.e. Tammaro De Marinis]" and "237" inscribed in pencil on 'title page’.Binding: Pasteboards covered in dark red-brown leather ; Type II binding (with flap) ; board linings in untinted laid paper ; upper and lower covers carry stamped and gold-painted scalloped mandorla (filled with vegetal composition, compare Déroche class. OAi2 1) and pendants, along with gold-painted accents and tooled border ; overall in poor condition with significant abrasion, lifting and losses of leather (spine and fore edge flap in particular), minor delamination of upper board, etc. ; repairs to fore edge flap in paper.Support: non-European (likely Persianate) laid paper with 7-8 laid lines per cm. (horizontal, somewhat indistinct) and no chain lines plainly visible, fairly thick and sturdy, well-burnished ; severe moisture damage to incipit page.Decoration: Illuminated headpiece (ʻunwān) at opening on p.2 consisting of rectangular piece with gold cartouche now carrying title "حديث اربعين لمولانا جامى" flanked by floral vegetal pieces in gold, pink, and orange on a field of blue, surmounted by a scalloped triangular piece or hasp continuing floral vegetal design, itself surmounted by vertical stalks (tīgh) in blue ; written area of incipit page (larger than written area elsewhere) appears to be gold or silver flecked, elsewhere only portions of the written area appear to be gold or silver flecked ; written area throughout surrounded by a gold frame with outermost blue rule ; ḥadīth text chrysographed.Script: Nastaʻlīq ; elegant hand ; serifless with characteristic descent of words to baseline and superscripting of final words and letters ; elongation of horizontal strokes ; text of ḥadīth fully vocalized.Layout: Written in roughly 9 lines per page, three of ḥadīth text and six of the Persian verse paraphrase with the hemistiches of four lines of verse divided and arranged on the diagonal ; written area divided to set off the ḥadīth text and elucidation ; frame-ruled.Collation: IV+1 (9) ; quaternion with added leaf ; catchwords present ; pagination in pencil, Western numerals, supplied during digitization.Colophon: "Authorial," reads " تمت ترجمه هذه الاربعين بتوفيق من هو ناصر ومعين سنه ست و ثمانين و ثمانمائة متع الله بها كل فريق فيه و الحمد لله على الاتمام و الصلوه و السلام على محمد و آله البررة الكرام"Explicit: "وقال لا يشبع المؤمن من دون جاره هر که در خطه مسلمانی باشد از نقد دین گر انمایه ... تمت ترجمه هذه الاربعين بتوفيق من هو ناصر ومعين سنه ست و ثمانين و ثمانمائة متع الله بها كل فريق فيه و الحمد لله على الاتمام و الصلوه و السلام على محمد و آله البررة الكرام اربعینهاى سالکان جامی هست بهر وصول صدر قبول بنود از فضل حق عجیب و غریب که بدین اربعین رسی بوصول"Incipit: "صحیح ترین حدیثی که راویان مجالس دین ... اما بعد این چهل کلمه است ازان کلمات که سهولت فهم و حفظ را بنظم فارسی ترجمه گر ده می آید امید ... لا يؤمن احدكم حتى يحب لاخيه ما يحب لنفسه هر کسی را لقب مکن مؤمن گرچه از سعی جان وتن کاهد ..."Title from headpiece at opening (p.2).Ms. codex.Cat. Pers. MSS. Brit. Mus.,Fine copy of Jāmī's verse paraphrase of forty ḥadīth.Mode of access: Internet.Acquired by purchase (funds donated by Horace Rackham).Numerous notes in ruqʻah script on upper and lower board linings and recto of final leaf (p.18) ; otherwise fairly clean copy