Dīvān-i Silsilah va al-Zahab (literally, The collection book of the chain of gold) is a work of Persian literature in verse. It forms volume one of a seven-volume literary collection of Mowlana Nur al-Din Abd al-Rahman Jami (1414-92), the famous Persian scholar, poet, and Sufi. The entire collection is known as Haft awrang (The seven thrones) and was one of Jami's first major works. Volume one is the longest volume, composed sometime between 1468 and 1486. This manuscript copy seems incomplete, as the final narrative of verses on scholars and perfectionists finishes suddenly and awkwardly. This copy has more than 100 pages paginated in Indo-Arabic numerals. Each verse narrative has subheadings rubricated in blue, gray, and red. This copy lacks preface and epilogue notes, making it difficult to establish the place, date, and contributor of the publication. A black ink hand-written line on the first blank page reads "Silsilah-i zahab, 28 Rabi Al-Awwal, 1246," being the title and the Islamic date (September 16, 1830), possibly the publication date. However, one of three seals on the same page gives the Islamic year as 1210 (1795-96); thus the correct date for this manuscript is uncertain. The author's name, Mowlana Abd al-Rahman Jami, appears on the second page. The complete Dīvān-i Silsilah has three sections; the first deals with ethical and didactic themes and includes short anecdotes and criticisms of contemporary society. Section two is of similar structure and deals with carnal and spiritual love. The third section is the conclusion. This copy is structured around religious and ethical themes and various heroic, historical, and sententious stories. Several narratives, such as the first verses, are in praise of God, his divinity, and supremacy. Page six praises the Prophet Muhammad. The verses on page 11 are on righteousness and justice. Ethical stories include one on pages 28-31 of a king and his son or perhaps a question-and-answer session of a king and a slave; on page 39 a story of a teacher and his student; and on pages 90-91 the tale of a village boy who reverses his decision to sell his old donkey after he hears that the broker wants to sell it as a young donkey in the market. Jami had direct connections with the Timurid court and its rulers in Herat and in Khorasan, particularly at the court of Sultan Husayn Baiqara. Jami's many works in poetry and prose include interpretive and religious commentaries, Persian poetry of different genres, mystical treatises, works on Arabic grammar, and elegies. He was influenced by Sufi mystical discourses, particularly of the Naqshbandi order, and by earlier Persian classic literary authors, including Sadi, Sanai, and Nizami. Scholars consider Jami's work as representative of a shift from the classical to the neoclassical Persian literary era, and regard Jami as one of the last great traditional Persian poets. World Digital Library.
Manuscript. Persian. Caption title on fol. 1a. Written by ʻAbbāsʻalī [illegible]. Gift of Amir Jafar and Parvindokt Hasheminejad, donated by their son, Mehdi Hasheminejad, item belonged to Amir Jafar Hasheminejad's collection and originated from Qajar era minister, Mehdi Lahooti, Badaye Negar's holdings. May 31, 2019. Written in Iran. Paper; coarse, unpolished, light greyish tan color commercial paper; black ink; catchwords. Nastaʻlīq; 10 lines in written area 13.5 x 6 cm. Fol. 1b-51a. Library of Congress. Persian manuscript, [unnumbered]. Binding; thin brown leather over cardboard; leather lacking on spine. Also available in digital form on the Library of Congress Web site.
Also available in digital form on the Library of Congress Web site. Manuscript. Persian. Title from title page (Folio 1a). Scribe not identified. Date of acquisition by former owner on fol. 1a: 18 shahr-i Ṣafar al-khayr 1335 [14 December 1916] Gift of Cyrus Ebrahim Zadeh, Nov. 9, 2009. Written in Iran? Paper: bluish, polished laid paper with horizontal chain line and visible watermarks; some pages have Russian countermark SUTF; floral unwan in gold, blue, green, red and pink; paper water damage to foredge; minor worm damage with no loss of text; black ink with rubrication and overlining in red; no catchwords. Naskh; 18 lines in written area 16 x 10 cm. Painted floral design on folios 1b and 170a; tabular charts in red and black ink on fol. 113b-114b and 140a-141a. Folio 1a-192b. Library of Congress. Manuscript, [unnumbered]. Binding: black leather binding with embossed frame lines, many gatherings loose.
Manuscript. Persian Caption title. Scribe not identified. Gift of Cyrus Ebrahim Zadeh, Nov. 9, 2009. Written in Iran? Paper: yellowish, polished cream color commercial paper with no visible watermarks; black ink, with rubrication and overlining in red; catchwords. Nastaʻliq; 15 lines in written area 13 x 6 cm. 1b-104a. Library of Congress. Manuscript, M306. Binding: brown leather frame and spine with embossed edges and red center panel.
Manuscript. Persian. Caption title. Written by Abī Turāb al-Sirḥānī. Gift of Cyrus Ebrahim Zadeh, Nov. 9, 2009. Possibly written in northern Iran. Paper: tan colored glazed laid paper with horizontal chain line and obscured armorial watermark, and countermark G M ; black ink in Naskh; catchwords; lacuna from Folio 1-10 caused by worm damage at top of page, with no loss of text. Naskh; 13 lines in written area 15 x 8.5 cm. Folio 1b-9b; 10a notes. With: Hāz̲ā kitāb-i Sirr-i bakhyah. [December 1853, Year of the Rat]. Bound together subsequent to publication. Library of Congress. Manuscript, M307b. Binding: medium brown leather with embossed gold center medallions front and back.
Manuscript. Persian. Caption title. Scribe not identified. Gift of Cyrus Ebrahim Zadeh, Nov. 9, 2009. Possibly written in northern Iran. Paper: tan colored glazed laid paper with horizontal chain line and obscured armorial watermark, and countermark G M ; black ink in cursive Nastaʻliq; catchwords; lacuna from Folio 1-26 caused by insect or rodent damage, with some loss of text. Nastaʻliq; 13 lines in written area 17 x 9 cm. Folio 1b-65b; 66a notes in Persian and Armenian. With: Badīʻī Tabrīzī. Hāz̲ā kitāb-i Mus̲allas̲ah. [May 1867]. Library of Congress. Manuscript, M307a. Binding: medium brown leather with embossed gold center medallions front and back.
Manuscript. Persian with passages in Arabic. Title supplied by cataloger. Scribe not identified. Written in either Iran or India. Paper; cream color laid paper with horizontal chain lines and watermark of a cross within a circle; black ink with minimal rubrication and some red overlining; catchwords. Naskh; 14 lines in written area 14 x 9.5 cm. Fol. 1a-69b. Library of Congress. Persian manuscript, M140. Flexible brown leather binding. Also available in digital form on the Library of Congress website.