Calligraphic Panel

The first line is a hadith of the Prophet, 'My intercession will be for those of my community who committed great sins.' In the second line the calligrapher – Sultan Mahmud II (r. 1808–1839) – begs for the intercession of the Prophet. The sultan's signature, which is in tughra form inside a wreath, is said to have been designed by Mustafa Rakim, who was calligraphy teacher to Sultan Mahmud and who is said to have supervized  the finishing of some of his pupil's work. [see CAL 334]