Browse Items (101 total)

Ethiopia's long history of Christian devotional reading can be seen in this carved and painted wooden book stand, recalling the famous monumental metalwork stands used for communal reading in the churches of the holy city of Lalibela, in northern…

Tailored for the senior rabbi of a synagogue in Bukhara, in modern-day Uzbekistan, this spectacular robe draws on a long Ottoman tradition of ornately decorated textiles. The robe, which would only have been worn on special occasions, features…

This painting depicts Prince Siyavush, whose story is told in Firdausi's Shahnameh, the Persian epic of kings and heroes, and among the most famous epic poems of world literature. Like Joseph in Egypt, the young prince is endangered when he refuses…

The sweet lyrics of Rumi (Maulana Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi) are among the gems of world literature, and his Spiritual Couplets (Masnavi) is one of the most well-known works of Islamic Sufism. This copy's small nasta'liq script, arranged in ornate…

The Hindu Legend of the Blessed One (Bhagavata Purana) celebrates the god Vishnu, who descends to Earth in various forms to restore the balance of the universe. This page comes from a now-dispersed copy featuring paintings on one side and the…

A vivid Asian-inspired European textile forms the cover, bookmark, and carrying strap of this East African volume, handwritten in the Ge'ez language used in the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. The manuscript, a private devotional text read during…

Whether hung on a wall or carried on the body, talismans covered with ornate inscriptions were believed to provide protection and secure blessings (Arabic, barakat). The gazelle skin shown here is inked with magic squares and inscriptions, promising…

In addition to Qur'anic and other devotional inscriptions, amulets often display magic squares--symmetrical arrangements of equal numbers, arranged on vertical, horizontal, and diagonal axes--in regular patterns called wafq, murabba', or buduh. One…

This unique case was designed to hold a miniature Qur'an, which would have been worn as a talisman to protect the wearer. A single loop at the upper right of the case indicates that this valuable object would have been suspended on a chain or cord.…

This talisman from Islamic Spain is a striking example of cloisonné enamel, created when coloured glass paste is added between strips of metal and heated. The vivid orange, green, and blue of this pendant were likely achieved by using coarsely…

Known as a bazuband, this type of Qur'an case was worn as an arm ornament. A silk string would be threaded through the palmette-shaped loops on either side of the box and tied around the bicep of a pious and wealthy person. Whether worn on the arm or…

The suspension loops of this gold amulet, a portable talisman, indicate that it would have been attached to a chain or cord, either worn around the neck or secured to a belt. Its inscribed Qur'anic verses offer blessings (Arabic, barakat) on the…

The Buddha teaches his disciple Subhuti how to achieve the perfection of wisdom on this page from the Diamond Sutra, composed in Sanskrit in India around the first century CE, and translated into Tibetan in the eighth century. This woodblock-printed…

This handwritten loose-leaf book (Tibetan, pecha) tells the story of a Buddhist woman named Alak Karma Wangzin who was a delog--that is, a person who dies briefly and then revives, and therefore can reveal the mysteries of life after death. Karma…

Physical travel is not the only form of journey: imaginative travel, guided by diagram or text, also provides access to new horizons. This rectangular tile, which would have been installed in a mosque or in a private home, depicts a stylized map of…

This pilgrimage (hajj) certificate shows the holy city of Mecca, with the Ka'ba at center and various monuments surrounding it. The style of the domed arches at the map's edge suggests that they may have been painted by Indian artists in Arabia. Like…

Prayer books in various faith traditions provide virtual pathways to spiritual journeys in the form of pilgrimage maps. For Muslims, the Dala'il al-Khayrat (Arabic, "Waymarks of Benefits") is the most important of these. Composed in northwestern…

Prayer books in the Christian tradition (or 'Books of Hours') list the regular set times and appropriate prayers for every day of the year. The Latin masculine word endings of the prayers reveal that this book was made for a male user, perhaps a monk…

Pilgrimage is both a spiritual journey and an experience of wonder. This painting depicts a visit by three men to the Amarnath Cave, a shrine located in the Himalayan Mountains of Kashmir, where they marvel at a natural ice pillar or stalagmite. For…

This carpet's size, design, and wear pattern reveal that it is a prayer rug, of a type popular in Turkey, Syria, and Iran. The symbolic forms woven into the carpet--prayer niche (mihrab), lamp, candles, incense burner, and ewers--bring its user…