Persian music theory from "The Pearly Crown"

Qutb al-Din al-Shirazi. Durrat al-taj wa-khulasat al-nitaj fi 'ilm al-musiqa.

€ 35.000,00

A section of "The Pearly Crown", easily the most influential work of the Persian poet-polymath Qutb al-Din al-Shirazi (1236-1311). This, the fourth section of the fourth chapter, is devoted to musical theory. Musical theory was already an advanced mathematical field in Persia by the time Qutb al-Din composed his work sometime in the first years of the 14th century (between 1294 and 1306). In this manuscript, the details and subtleties of music and musical notes are explained visually across numerous charts and tidy geometrical diagrams.

"The Pearly Crown" was a general encyclopedic work, and discussed not only music theory but also natural philosophy, logic, theology, astronomy, mathematics, ethics, and even affairs of state. As an encyclopedic text, it drew upon various sources, particularly the "Risala al-Sharafiyah fi'l-nasab al-ta'lifiyah" by Qutb al-Din's contemporary Safi al-Din al-Urmawi (d. 1294), with additional material taken from Al-Farabi's (872-951) "Kitab al-Musiqa al-Kabir" and Ibn Sina's (980-1037) chapter on music in "Kitab al-Shifa".

This particular copy, per its colophon, was commissioned for Mirza Muhammad Ali and copied in the city of Shiraz by Isma'il Shirazi.

Light external wear, a few minor hints of paper damage and repair, altogether in good condition.