An Ottoman manuscript follows a clear visual order that guides the reader from its opening pages to its final lines. Learning to read this structure, from the illuminated serlevha to the colophon, allows collectors and art lovers to understand how a book was made and used.
Direction and Binding
Ottoman manuscripts are written in Arabic script, so they are read from right to left. The book opens from what a Western reader would consider the back.
Many manuscripts are bound in leather with a fore-edge flap, called the mıklep, that folds over to protect the pages. Covers often bear stamped or gilded central medallions known as şemse.
The Zahriye
Before the text begins, many fine manuscripts include a zahriye, a decorated page often featuring an illuminated medallion. The medallion may hold the title of the work or a dedication to its patron.
Ownership notes and seals are also frequently found on the opening leaves, offering clues to a book’s later history.
The Serlevha: The Illuminated Opening
The serlevha is the grand opening of the text, typically a double page. The first lines are framed by rich tezhip, with a decorated headpiece, called unvan or başlık, above the text and illuminated borders around it.
This is often the most elaborately decorated part of the book, where the illuminator displays rumi, hatayi and floral motifs in gold and lapis blue. Explore these motifs in our illumination category.
The Text Page and Its Margins
Inside the book, each page follows a consistent layout. Key elements to look for include:
- Ruled frames (cetvel): fine lines of gold and colour surrounding the text block.
- Text block: written within a ruled area, keeping lines straight and evenly spaced.
- Margins: broad borders that may carry notes, corrections or decoration.
- Chapter headings: often written in red ink or set within small illuminated panels.
- Verse markers: in Qur’ans, small gold rosettes separating verses.
- Catchwords: the first word of the following page written at the bottom of the left-hand page to keep the leaves in order.
Margin notes can be valuable, showing how readers studied and commented upon a text over time.
The Colophon
At the end of the text, the scribe often added a colophon, sometimes written in a triangular shape. It may give the scribe’s name, the date of completion and occasionally the place of copying.
Dates usually follow the Islamic Hijri calendar and must be converted to the Common Era. Not every manuscript has a colophon, and some have been altered, so the evidence should be weighed carefully. Our history of calligraphy explains the scripts you will encounter here.
Putting It Together
Reading a manuscript as a whole, from binding to colophon, reveals much about its patron, its makers and its readers. Each element contributes to the story told in the wider world of Ottoman art.
With practice, these conventions become familiar, and even a single detached leaf can be read for what it reveals about the book it once belonged to. A ruled frame, a catchword or a fragment of a heading can all hint at the leaf’s original position and purpose.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a serlevha?
A serlevha is the illuminated opening of a manuscript, usually a double page where the text begins within richly decorated frames and headpieces.
What is a zahriye?
A zahriye is a decorated page placed before the beginning of the text, often featuring an illuminated medallion that may contain the title of the work or a dedication.
What information does a colophon give?
A colophon, the closing note of a manuscript, may record the name of the scribe, the date and sometimes the place of copying, though not every manuscript includes all of these details.
