Chester Beatty's A-Z

Many Islamic amulets are inscribed with magic squares; less common are the rows of ‘magic’ numerals that fill the central space of this amulet.

The precise function or meaning of these is uncertain, as is the identity of the individual – one Shah Sultan – whose name is inscribed in gold in the centre of the amulet.

This scroll contains magical prayers to protect against evil. Although it contains a passage from the Gospel of John, it was made for a Muslim woman named Gamila.

The exchange of magical practices between Muslims and Christians was common in Ethiopia.

The figure is probably the Archangel Phanuel, who is invoked in the text.

Perhaps the most popular deity in the Hindu pantheon is the blue-skinned Lord Krishna, the eighth avatar or incarnation of Vishnu, preserver and protector of the universe.

Scrolls like this with an impressive length of 21 metres were usually rolled up in a capsule made of metal, often attached to bands and worn on the upper arm or around the neck.

The tenth book of the Bhagavata Purana relates stories of Krishna’s childhood and youth.

In Islam calligraphy is the most highly regarded art form, for it is by means of writing – of calligraphy – that the exact words God spoke to the Prophet Muhammad are recorded and preserved in the form of the Qur’an.

Over the centuries, different styles of calligraphy developed, often with a precise canon of proportion established to guide the writing of the script.

The Islamic Collections include many finely calligraphed Qur’ans, but few as large as this. The main text of this monumental manuscript is copied in muhaqqaq, a majestic and legible script commonly used for Qur’ans.

However, the inscriptions in the panels above and below the text are written in kufic, a script which though very decorative is difficult to read.

Japan inherited from China a fascination with the artistic potential of inscribing characters while developing its own distinctive system for rendering poetry and prose written in the vernacular.

This colourfully illustrated version of the 10th-century Tales of Ise is a fine early example of the genre known as Nara ehon (Nara picture books).

In the East Asian tradition, the written word has played a central role, as the freedom of the brush was thought truly to reveal one’s personality.

Through the copying of revered models and through creative innovation, a distinctive handwriting style conveyed one’s literary education, cultural refinement and aesthetic flair.

In Buddhist East Asia demons are mostly known as ashuras, ‘anti-gods’ who reside in Hell and represent one of the six realms of existence, into which one can be reborn.

In Japanese paintings demons often have an ogre-like appearance, with bulging eyes, long hair and horns, tiger fangs and claws, and wearing only loin cloths and fur shoulder capes.

The legend of the famous war lord, Minamoto no Yoshitsune (c. 1159–1189), tells the story of how the hero and his followers conquered the underworld.

In this scene, Yoshitsune’s loyal companion, Benkei, splits open the head of one of the demons, while Yoshitsune, holding a fan, looks on.

The
ancient craft of embroidery has been practised in many cultures to sumptuously
decorate textiles, mostly costumes, accessories and furnishings.

In China, embroidered symbols on clothing indicated status and endowed the individual with protective or auspicious properties.

Rank badges, popularly called mandarin squares, were worn by civil and military officials to indicate rank: various species of birds were used to denote the nine civil ranks, while animals were used for the nine military ranks.

These squares were sewn to the front and back of the dark surcoats worn by government officials at formal occasions during the Qing dynasty (1644–1911), when a strict dress code was enforced.

Embroidered bindings of velvet, satin, silk or canvas, embellished with designs worked in metallic and silk thread, were fashionable among wealthy patrons throughout Europe during the 16th and 17th centuries.

Usually the work of professional embroiderers, they often covered devotional works and almanacs. The decorated fabric was glued or stitched to the boards of a bound volume.

The invention of the folding fan in Heian period Japan (794–1185) brought about a revolution as it was much smaller than the rigid round or oval fan and could be carried in the sleeve or tucked into the boot.

Adopted for the Western market during the 18th and 19th centuries, export folding fans – particularly the brisé type, made entirely from rigid segments – represent the peak of craftsmanship in decoration, carving, inlay and lacquer work.

This skilfully crafted folding fan is an important work by the master Kunihisa, a famous ukiyo-e woodblock print maker of Yokohama in the late 19th century.

The surface is finely painted with figures in traditional costume set against a panoramic background. The sticks and guards are of ivory, the latter inlaid with so-called Shibayama technique.

Within this enticing environment, brightly tiled pavilions and cool marble terraces provide relief from the heat and serve as a stage for a variety of events, from moments of solitude and quiet to more boisterous displays of music and dance.

‘As far as the eye can see’ is the phrase that immediately springs to mind when looking at this beautiful painting.

The main event may be the young woman in the foreground dancing while deftly balancing a full bottle on her head, but it is the enclosed gardens spread out behind her that catch the eye, drawing it farther and farther into the distance.

One of the treasures of Beatty’s collection is the Coëtivy Hours. Originally commissioned by Prigent de Coëtivy on the occasion of his marriage to Marie de Raiz in Paris in 1444, it was later acquired by Edith Beatty as a gift for her husband.

Of the 148 miniatures in this manuscript, 47 were produced to illustrate the Suffrages (prayers dedicated to martyrs and other saints).

According to the Golden Legend, while Mark was performing Easter service in Alexandria, a crowd of pagans gathered, threw a cord around his neck and dragged him through the city.

Chester Beatty was
noted for his refined and discerning taste, and he took care to purchase only
the best material available. Beautifully illuminated manuscripts, albums and
scrolls make up much of his collection, which has altered little since his
death in 1968.

‘Illumination’ refers to light and it is from the use of gold to represent light – usually Divine light – that the technique of decorating works of art (generally works on paper or parchment) receives its name.

Islamic manuscripts in particular are renowned for their copious use of gold, most often in conjunction with a deep blue pigment made from ground lapis lazuli.

Within the realm of Islamic art, the term ‘illumination’ refers only to non-figurative decoration, and the most characteristic motif of Islamic illumination is the arabesque, a scrolling and interlaced vine from which spring palmette leaves and/or blossoms.

This folio was once paired with a matching folio and placed at the beginning of one section (or juz) of a monumental 30-part Qur’an, the folios of which are now dispersed around the world.

The first and last openings of text in each section were surrounded by illumination and, also, each chapter began with an elaborate illuminated heading.

Some of the surviving folios are signed by either the calligrapher or the illuminator.

Several are also dated, and from this we know that on average it took three months to illuminate one volume, about twice as long as it took to copy out the text.

The stone of emperors and kings, jade has embellished their palaces, adorned their bodies and even accompanied them to their graves to join them in the afterlife because of its alleged magical and healing properties.

The Chinese character for jade (yu) traditionally referred to a number of hard stones. Today we distinguish between ‘soft jade’ (nephrite) and ‘hard jade’ (jadeite).

The Islamic
Collections, especially, abound with material made for, and depicting, kings
(sultans, shahs and padshahs), princes and other members of royalty.

Awrangzib (r. 1658–1707) is depicted as one would expect a king to be portrayed: formally and solemnly seated upon a throne of gold encrusted with precious gems, wearing robes made of richly embroidered or brocade fabrics and bedecked in strings of pearls and rubies.

A jewelled parasol – a symbol of royalty – helps shield him from the sun, while a magnificent golden halo confirms his status as divinely sanctioned monarch.

The Mughal rulers of India were avid patrons of painting, in particular portraiture.

Even in officially commissioned paintings, Akbar (r. 1556–1605) was at times depicted rather humbly, as he is here, simply dressed and minus the accoutrements and paraphernalia of royalty included in the painting of his great-grandson Awrangzib.

Lacquer is a unique Asian artistic material, a hard glossy
surface covering that is applied to an object to make it more beautiful and to
render it resistant to heat, water, insects and acid. This tough, impervious substance derives primarily from the translucent sap of the Rhus verniciflua tree and has been used as a protective coating since prehistoric times.

In Japan, the time-consuming and expensive art of lacquer making has maintained an unparalleled level of technical virtuosity.

The Chester Beatty holds a group of lacquer incense storage boxes (kobako) in various shapes.

Patronised by the samurai warrior class, Noh became a court entertainment, in which the actors wear masks and elaborate costumes in a blending of chant, music and dance.

Performances take place in a minimalist setting, accompanied by musicians playing flute and drum and a chorus of singers. The fan is the most important prop to indicate objects, actions or emotions.

The first scene of the noh play Okina (The Old Man) is shown here.

The artist captures the layout of a Noh theatre with the lead actor, wearing an elaborate robe and mask and holding a fan to accentuate gestures, performing with musicians and singers in front of a seated audience.

Centred in Baghdad, this intellectual movement started in the 8th century with the translation, mostly from Greek, of scientific texts by such thinkers as Galen, Plato, Aristotle and Euclid, all of whom had theories on optics.

Arabic-speaking scientists studied these translations, critiqued the content and developed the ideas further through their own reflection and experience.

In addition to benefitting their own society, the works they composed were, from the 11th century, translated from Arabic into Latin and circulated for several centuries in Europe, where they influenced and stimulated awakening scientific endeavours.

Ali ibn Isa al-Kahhal was a practising eye specialist living in late 10th-century Baghdad, where he wrote this influential textbook.

It explores the means by which eyes can see, and catalogues diseases of the eye and their treatment. On these pages he discusses seeing at a distance and up close.

His work was translated into many languages and published in Latin in 1497.

Abu’l-Qasim al-Zahrawi (known in the West as Albucasis) was a surgeon in 11th-century Andalucia (present-day Spain).

He composed this treatise, which illustrates over 200 surgical tools he had devised, and explains how to use them.

Shown here are tools, including scissors and scalpel, used for treating problems of the eyelids, such as growths and inverted eyelashes.

The Chester Beatty's collection of papyri includes both documentary and religious texts primarily dating to between the 1st and 6th centuries AD, although some of the Egyptian papyri date to as early as 1800 BC.

The Chester Beatty Biblical Papyri is one of the most important collections of early Christian texts so far discovered.

It includes manuscripts from as early as the 2nd century and highlights the Christian preference for the codex over the scroll.

A decorative flourish marks the end of ‘The Epistle of Enoch’ and the beginning of the Passion homily of ‘Melito’, Bishop of Sardis (d.c. 180).

This simple embellishment represents some of the earliest ornamentation of Christian codices.

Similar decorative devices are found in the Codex Sinaiticus. Beatty contributed toward the acquisition of the Sinaiticus manuscript for the British Museum.

These prints were produced on the occasion of the coronation of George III (1738–1820) and his queen consort, Sophia Charlotte (1744–1818), on 22 September 1761.

Produced to take advantage of the popularity of the new queen, such prints were originally sold as facing pairs together with a portrait of the king.

Mezzotint engravers working in London at the time were dominated by a group of Irish artists.

Of this ‘Dublin Group’, as they came to be called, James McArdell was the leading figure of his generation. A keen businessman, McArdell published many of his own plates (such as this one), although this did little to stop pirated copies from being sold by unscrupulous print-sellers.

Unlike most of his fellow mezzotint engravers, who made affordable print copies of paintings by renowned artists, Thomas Frye produced a number of original prints.

He designed three versions of Queen Charlotte in 1762 and this particular composition inspired numerous copies by other mezzotint engravers

‘Celebrity’ prints were particularly popular in the 18th century.

This was due in part to the fact that mezzotint engravings allowed for more subtle gradations in light and shade than other printing techniques. Consequently, artists were able to produce more painterly qualities, like naturalistic lighting effects and realistic textures.

These caricatures or political cartoons were produced relatively cheaply in hand-coloured etching or aquatint.

Although they only represent a small proportion of the propaganda produced during this period, these humorous images both reflected and influenced public opinion.

This anonymous cartoonist has satirised the attempted escape of the royal couple through Montmédy when Queen Marie-Antoinette travelled under the name Madame de Korff (de Caoffre) with the King as her valet de chambre.

Louis XVI acts as the Queen’s coiffeur; her hair was often the subject of ridicule because it was linked to the extravagant sums she spent on fashion.

The Shahnama, or Book of Kings, is the epic poem completed by Abu’l-Qasim Firdawsi in the year 1010.

Widely regarded as the national epic of Iran, it tells the story of the kings and heroes of pre-Islamic Iran.

In almost any copy of the Shahnama the scenes of the Simurgh are amongst the most beguiling.

With its wonderfully coiffed head feathers and flowing tail feathers, and, especially, in its role as the protector of Zal and his son Rustam, the greatest hero of the Shahnama, what artist could resist depicting the Simurgh?

This dramatic painting depicts the moment when the baby Zal – born an albino and rejected by his father who leaves him to perish on a mountainside – is swept up by the Simurgh.

Intending to serve him up as a tasty morsel for her chicks, the Simurgh instead saves him, raising him in her nest alongside her own offspring.

In Europe, the introduction of movable type in the mid-15th century coincided
with the age of discovery, and travel literature became increasingly popular.

By the 16th century demand for travel narratives had significantly increased. The genre is very broad, and in an era of imperial expansion included the travelogues of explorers, diplomats, missionaries and early settlers.

As one might expect from a collector who enjoyed travelling throughout his life, Chester Beatty’s Collection includes a number of rare 16th-century travel accounts.

This is an early edition of author and cartographer Porcacchi’s celebrated description of islands, with numerous illustrations throughout by the Paduan engraver Girolamo Porro (c. 1520–1604).

The work contains an early map and four-page description of the four provinces of Ireland, and of the dress of its inhabitants.

Ukiyo-e literally means ‘floating world pictures’ and is often used as a
generic term for Japanese woodblock prints of the 17th to 19th centuries which
depicted the ‘floating world’ of urban pleasures –  beautiful courtesans, 'kabuki' actors and common people in the licensed brothels, theatres,
restaurants and tea houses.

Pictures of beautiful women (bijin-ga), usually the most popular and trendsetting courtesans, were one of the prevalent image genres.

This polychrome work by the Edo print designer, book illustrator and painter Chobunsai Eishi, possibly part of a triptych, depicts a group of women in a large manor house in the countryside.

Frequently used as posters or advertisements, they were quickly and cheaply mass-produced for the newly prosperous chonin (townsmen) class of the major cities of Edo (modern Tokyo), Osaka and Kyoto.

The celebrated master Hiroshige, one of the leading designers of landscape prints, was particularly skilled at conveying the season, weather and time of day.

In this print a white cat, outlined in the kimedashi embossing technique, watches a procession from the windowsill of a tea house and represents the courtesan who has just finished her work.

The ukiyo-e woodblock print is the best known of Japan’s traditional art forms. It was their discovery and subsequent popularity that kindled the wild enthusiasm for Japonisme in late 19th-century Europe, and inspired the Impressionists.

The Chester Beatty's collection of 450 ukiyo-e prints spans the 250-year history of the genre, containing superb single-sheet prints and illustrated books by most of the major artists.

The word vellum is often used interchangeably with parchment to refer to
any animal skin prepared for use in manuscripts. Vellum, however, often refers
specifically to the skin of a young calf. Islamic book makers adopted paper well before their European counterparts and, because of this, the majority of the vellum in the collection was produced in Europe.

The skin is prepared by soaking it in a lime bath, scraping it to remove the flesh, hair, and fat, and stretching it on a wooden frame. Text is written on the surface with ink, and folios are often ornamented with pigments and gold.

Vellum has also been used for many centuries as a bookbinding material. It is often used in ‘limp’ bindings (without strengthening boards) and may be inked, stained, painted, or tooled for additional decorative effect. There are numerous examples in the collection of vellum both as a writing surface and a binding material.

John the Baptist, or John 'the Forerunner' as he is known in the Eastern Orthodox Church, is here depicted as the Angel in the Desert.

Although he was a historical figure, he is represented with wings because he is the divine messenger (or angel) announcing the coming of the Saviour.

In Eastern Orthodox icons, John’s role as the forerunner to Christ or the last Old Testament holy prophet before Christ, is emphasised.

He carries a chalice holding the ‘sacrificial lamb’, depicted in the East not as a lamb (as in Western iconography) but as the baby Jesus.

In addition, his scroll reads: ‘Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world’. The Forerunner is one of the most highly venerated saints in the Orthodox Church, second only to Mary, the mother of God.

This composition is typical of the Greek tradition of icons depicting John the Forerunner. He is alone in the wilderness, wearing a robe of camel hair to signify his status as the first ascetic.

A small axe by a tree refers to his ministry (Matthew 3:10) and the instrument of his martyrdom.

While the Hindu-Arabic numbering system became popular among European
scholars in the early 13th century, Roman numerals continued to be used for
centuries. The popularity of Roman numerals in everyday life is highlighted by the practice of marking playing card values with them well into the 17th century.

In the late 17th century, politico-historical playing cards became particularly popular.

This set of cards, based on drawings by Francis Barlow, depicts the Popish Plot of 1678.

Coinciding with a period of heightened hostility towards Catholics in England, Scotland and Ireland, suspicions of popery and tyranny were used as political weapons.

In the midst of this hysteria, Titus Oates, together with Israel Tong and others, conspired to manufacture a popish plot to assassinate Charles II.

Although the machination was later uncovered and the schemers imprisoned, the fictional plot led to the execution of at least fifteen Catholic ‘conspirators’.

The
yurt is a portable housing structure used by nomads since ancient times in the Central
Asian steppe, particularly Mongolia and Kazakhstan. Circular in shape, it is usually made of a lattice wall of flexible wood and covered by thick layers of fabric or sheep’s wool felt to resist cold winds and rain.The slightly-domed top of the roof, called the 'crown', is partially open to allow air to circulate and to accommodate a long chimney.

The Qianlong emperor (r. 1736–1795), keen on maintaining the Manchu nomadic tradition, is known to have used yurts as temporary dwellings during his autumn hunts in Muran (Mulan in Chinese), north of his summer residence in Hebei province - and for festive occasions such as opulent banquets in the Zhongnanhai area west of the imperial palace in Beijing.

This is the last of sixteen engravings commissioned by the Qianlong emperor to celebrate his military consolidation of East Turkestan (today Xinjiang).

The imperial procession is making its way towards a large ceremonial yurt, complete with a temporary throne, which is the focus of the heavily populated banquet scene.

Written by the Persian astronomer, Abd al-Rahman al-Sufi in about 960, this astronomical treatise is based ultimately on an ancient Greek source, Ptolemy’s Almagest.

It includes numerous drawings of the signs of the zodiac and other constellations with the star points indicated in gold. Many figures appear as mirror-image pairs

In the traditional Islamic setting, astronomy was important for religious purposes (as it is today).

Astrology, too, flourished, both within and beyond the court, despite theological objections that it is not compatible with belief in the omnipotent will and power of God.

In Europe, the Renaissance brought a renewed interest in classical science, including astronomy.

The publication of lavish, hand-coloured celestial atlases flourished in the 16th and 17th centuries, incorporating the motifs of the zodiac and other constellation-figures derived from Antiquity.

Also known as the 'Atlas Coelestis', this collection of celestial maps is renowned for the beauty of its 29 hand-coloured and illuminated double plates.

The first 21 describe the astronomical theories of Ptolemy, Copernicus and Tycho Brahe and feature the signs of the zodiac as still in use today.