This item has been added to the Database within the Explore Islamic Art Collections project. Information is available in: English, Arabic.

Name of Object:

The Dala’il al-khayrat of al-Jazuli

Location:

London, United Kingdom

Holding Museum:

Khalili Family Trust – Hajj and the Arts of Pilgrimage Collection

About Khalili Family Trust – Hajj and the Arts of Pilgrimage Collection, London

Date of Object:

Dated Hejira 24 Ramadan 1290 / AD 15 November 1873

Museum Inventory Number:

MSS 1245

Material(s) / Technique(s):

Ink, gold, silver and opaque watercolours on paper; contemporary leather binding and flap with painted and tooled designs in gold and silver

Dimensions:

89 folios; 10 x 12cm

Period / Dynasty:

Ottoman

Provenance:

North Africa or possibly Mecca

Description:

The Dala’il al-khayrat wa shawariq al-anwar fi dhikr al-salat ‘ala al-nabi al-mukhtar – better known by its abbreviated tilte, Dala’il al-khayrat – is one of the most popular works of prayer in the Islamic world. It was composed by a natïve of Sus, Abu ‘Abdullah Muhammad ibn Sulayman ibn Abu Bakr al-Jazuli (d. 1645).

As its name suggests, the work consists of numerous prayers for the Prophet, together with his epithets, and a description of his tomb, a diagrammatic depiction of which is found in most North African copies. Ottoman copies of the work, especially those from the 18th century onwards, however, tend to include perspective views of the two Holy Sanctuaries at Mecca and Medina, thus diverging from the text of the manuscript.

The style of writing – a clear, Maghribi hand – and the square format of this manuscript place its origin in North Africa. However, the illumination, the inclusion of Mecca, and the original binding, are closer to mainstream Ottoman work, and it is posible that it was copied elsewhere, perhaps in Mecca.

How date and origin were established:

Provenance and date are based on stylistic grounds.

Selected bibliography:

Ben Cheneb, M., “al-Djazuli”, in Bosworth, C.E., van Donzel, E.J., Pearson, H. (eds), Encyclopaedia of Islam, vol. 2 (C-G), Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1983: 527–8.
Porter, V., (ed.), Hajj: journey to the heart of Islam, exhibition catalogue, London: British Museum, 2012: 52–5.

Citation of this web page:

Nahla Nassar "The Dala’il al-khayrat of al-Jazuli" in Explore Islamic Art Collections. Museum With No Frontiers, 2024. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;EPM;uk;Mus22;36;en

Prepared by: Nahla Nassar

MWNF Working Number: UK2 36