The Muqaddimah: An Introduction to History, trans. Although the “magic square” became significant through Sufi esotericism, the earliest reported mention of a magic square can be traced to Ferdowsi’s Shahnama, the Iranian national epic of kingship from the beginning of civilization to the 7th century Arab conquest. 48.Ĩ Abjad numerology assigns numeric value to letters, which can be used in lieu of numbers in a magic square configuration. This talismanic shirt, dated 1750–1900 for its manufacture and having the kind of floral design popular in both Iran and India in the seventeenth century, may reflect the trend toward less expensive techniques used to create floral textiles following the dynasty’s demise.ħ See Francesca Leoni, Power and Protection: Islamic Art and the Supernatural, cat. The seemingly identical design layout and color scheme of these inscribed garments create questions about the possibility that artists used a template for creating multiples in this context, one questions whether these garments were produced as diplomatic gifts, for purchase by individuals on the open market, or transported from one region to another.ĥ Additional materials for talismanic shirts include linen, silk, and cellulosic blends.Ħ The Safavid textile industry was greatly hindered by the end of the dynasty, 1722. 1998.199), also attributed to the North Deccan or India. An almost identical example is found in the collections of The Metropolitan Museum in New York (accession no. Istanbul: Timaş.Ĥ In addition to T59-1935, a similar shirt attributed to India in the same time period is in the collections at the Victoria & Albert Museum, London. Tilsimli Gömlekler Topkapı Sarayı Müzesi koleksiyonundan. 48, note 3.Ģ For the purposes of this study, the larger study of these traditions in the Islamic world will be limited to those relating directly to textiles, and the use of thread, cloth, and garments in the context of talismans and protection.ģ The most comprehensive study of talismanic shirts in the Topkapi Saray Museum is by Dr. Power and Protection: Islamic Art and the Supernatural. 1520–1566), wrote him a letter in the 1530s urging him to wear the shirt she had sent to him while on the battlefield to protect him from harm. Hürrem Sultan, the favorite wife of Suleyman I (r. Specific verses from the Qur’an are included as an analytic device for understanding the Islamic perception of textiles and garments on a literal and metaphorical level, as well as spiritual and political practices involving cloth and power.ġ One mention of a talismanic shirt in primary literature comes from 16th century Ottoman Turkey. Specifically addressing the traditions of Zoroastrian, Hindu, and Shamanistic Turkic religious practices, the relationship between cloth, thread, and sacred teachings is explored in relation to the later empires that emerged from these regions. In addition, Qur’an-inscribed garments that emerge as a phenomenon in the Early Modern period are examined in relation to the origin of talismanic clothing in the belief systems that preceded the Muslim era. Though recent scholarship accepts these textiles as protective devices worn on the battlefield, this study suggests several additional contexts for the use of these talismanic garments. The premise for scripture as talisman in Islam, the relationship between text and textile, and pre-Islamic relationships to cloth and spirituality in these regions are included in the discussion. The objects include extant examples of talismanic clothing from Iran, Turkey, and India created between the late fifteenth century and mid-eighteenth centuries. This study examines clothing inscribed with religious scripture and mystic symbols as a talisman in Early Modern Islamic culture.
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