This exquisitely decorated manuscript from the 18th century contains the Persian poet's quatrains, i.e. four lined poems, on the art of enjoying life. [O Nova 42]
Fol. 129v-130r Title and first poems
Omar Khayyám lived in Persia between 1048-1131 A.D. He was a mathematician and worked as an astronomer for the Sultan of Samarkand, but he also devoted his time to philosophy and poetry. His poetical masterpiece, the Rubáiyát, became well-known in the West thanks to Edward Fitzgerald's free interpretation.
Fol. 161v-162r
Every time the reader opens the manuscript he is presented with four thought provoking poems, each consisting of four lines and framed in four squares.
Fol. 192v-193r with the name of the copyist
The manuscript, which is written in Persian, was purchased in Constantinople by the Swedish Legation Secretary, Albrecht Elof Ihre, who brought it home with him on his return to Sweden in 1825.
Search the Swedish national library catalogue LIBRIS for an English translation of Omar Khayyám's Rubáiyát.
