Manuscript of the Zubdat al-Tawarikh (Cream of Histories)first half of 17th century

Not on view

Illuminated manuscript spread, two pages with Arabic-script genealogical diagrams, chains of red-outlined circles connected by lines, and miniature oval medallions containing painted figures in colorful robes and turbans

Marbled paper with a stone or peacock pattern, featuring rounded clusters of green, gray, tan, and dark brown shapes outlined by branching cream veins across the entire surface.

Illuminated manuscript page with an ornate headpiece in gold, blue, and red featuring an arabesque arch design enclosing a cartouche with Arabic script. Below, dense columns of Arabic text in black ink with select phrases highlighted in red and gold.

Manuscript page with dense Arabic-script text in black ink, with selected words and phrases highlighted in red, gold, and green, arranged in justified lines within a ruled border on cream paper.

Illuminated manuscript page with dense Arabic-script text in black ink, framed by a thin red and gold border, with selected words and phrases highlighted in red, gold, and green throughout.

Manuscript page with dense Nastaliq script in black ink, with selected words highlighted in red, gold, and blue, arranged in approximately 25 lines within a ruled double border on cream paper.

Illustrated manuscript page with Arabic or Ottoman Turkish script, featuring a genealogical diagram. Three circular medallion portraits connected by lines: two figures in courtly dress at bottom corners, and a pair of seated figures at top center. Red and black Arabic script labels each node in the vertical chain of medallions, with dense diagonal calligraphy arching above.

Illustrated manuscript page with Arabic or Persian script surrounding a vertical chain of blue and red medallions. Three circular medallions contain miniature figures: a seated scholar in blue robes reading a book at top, a seated figure in orange robes at lower left, and a turbaned figure at lower right. Dense columns of black script fill the margins.

Illuminated manuscript page with a genealogical diagram in Arabic script, featuring five medallion portraits of seated male figures in turbans and robes connected by blue lines, surrounded by red and black text in circular nodes along vertical columns.

Illustrated manuscript page with Arabic script, featuring a genealogical or transmission diagram of red and blue vertical lines connecting circular medallions with Arabic text. Three painted roundels depict turbaned figures in seated poses wearing green, blue, and gold robes. Dense Arabic text fills the central and lower portions of the page, framed by a ruled border.

Illustrated manuscript page with Arabic script in black and red ink, featuring four circular medallions containing paired seated figures in robes and turbans, connected by a genealogical diagram with red and blue circular labels.

Illustrated manuscript page with genealogical diagram; circular medallions containing Arabic script connected by blue and red lines, with five painted portrait roundels depicting turbaned and crowned figures in colorful robes; Arabic text in black ink fills the margins.

Illuminated manuscript page with a genealogical diagram in Arabic script, featuring circular medallions connected by lines. Six miniature portraits of seated and standing figures in turbans and robes are interspersed among labeled nodes in red and black Arabic calligraphy, on a cream ground with a ruled border.

Illustrated manuscript page with Arabic script arranged in vertical columns of small circular medallions outlined in red and blue, connected by lines forming a genealogical diagram. Five miniature portrait roundels are embedded within the layout: two turbaned male figures at upper center, and three figures at lower center including a seated woman nursing an infant. Black naskh script fills the central panel with red-ink annotations throughout.

Illustrated manuscript page with an elaborate genealogical diagram: Arabic or Ottoman Turkish script in red and blue circles connected by branching lines. At center, four turbaned male figures in colorful robes are grouped around a fifth central figure, rendered in fine miniature painting style.

Illustrated manuscript page with an Ottoman genealogical diagram; Arabic script in gold and red medallions connected by branching lines, with five miniature portraits of seated robed figures at top and bottom, set within a red-ruled border on cream paper.

Illuminated manuscript page with Arabic script text columns and a genealogical diagram of interconnected red and blue circles. Four medallion portraits depict seated and standing male figures in turbans and robes; lines link the circles across the page.

Illustrated manuscript page with Arabic script text and a genealogical diagram of linked circles containing names in Arabic, with three miniature portraits of turbaned male figures in colored robes set within larger medallions connected by lines.

Illuminated manuscript page with Arabic or Ottoman Turkish script, featuring a genealogical diagram with blue and red circular nodes connected by lines. Three illustrated medallions depict seated male figures in colorful robes and turbans; a fourth medallion shows a bearded male portrait. Red and black text fills columns at top.

Illuminated manuscript double-page spread with Arabic script text blocks and genealogical diagrams connecting circular medallions; several medallions contain miniature portraits of turbaned and capped male figures in colorful robes; lines and labeled circles in red and blue ink form branching network patterns across both pages, with red-bordered frames and gold ruling.

Illuminated manuscript page with Arabic script arranged in columns and blocks, featuring a vertical genealogical diagram with circular medallions connected by lines. Three small painted portrait roundels depict seated and standing figures in Ottoman-style dress and turbans, rendered in orange, red, and gold. Labeled nodes in Arabic script branch horizontally at left and right.

Illustrated manuscript page with two medallion portraits connected by a vertical blue line forming a genealogical diagram. Upper medallion shows a seated figure in red robes; lower medallion shows a seated figure in blue robes with a feathered hat. Red circular labels with Arabic script mark nodes along the diagram, with Arabic text annotations in columns on either side.

Illustrated manuscript page with Arabic or Ottoman Turkish script, featuring three circular medallion portraits of turbaned male figures in colored robes arranged vertically, connected by a triangular diagram at the bottom; red and gold circular labels accompany each figure.

Manuscript page with Arabic script in black ink, select words and headings highlighted in red, framed by thin red and gold ruling, with circular red seal stamps in the right margin.

Illuminated manuscript page with Arabic script text above a genealogical diagram. Lines extend downward to a small circular miniature of a seated, robed figure wearing a red-topped white turban. Circular medallions with Arabic inscriptions appear along the connecting lines. Red double-rule border frames the page.

Illuminated manuscript page with three circular medallion portraits of turbaned male figures arranged vertically, connected by blue lines forming a genealogical diagram, surrounded by Arabic script in black and gold ink on cream-colored vellum.

Illuminated manuscript double-page spread with Arabic script; each page features a vertical genealogical diagram connecting three circular medallion portraits of seated male figures in turbans and robes, rendered in polychrome gouache, with radiating lines linking labeled circular nodes in blue and gold.

Illustrated manuscript page with three oval miniature portraits of turbaned male figures in ornate robes, arranged vertically and connected by lines in a genealogical diagram, surrounded by Arabic or Ottoman Turkish script and gold-highlighted circular medallions on cream paper

Illustrated manuscript page with three oval portrait medallions arranged vertically, each depicting a seated male figure wearing a white turban, connected by blue lines to surrounding circular medallions with Arabic or Ottoman Turkish script in gold and black; dense calligraphic text fills the background.

Illustrated manuscript page with Arabic script, depicting three turbaned male figures arranged vertically and connected by a blue line, each set within a gold medallion and surrounded by empty circles in a genealogical diagram; figures wear robes in red, yellow, and green; fine opaque watercolor on paper with gilt and red border.

Illustrated manuscript page with Arabic script in columns surrounding three vertically arranged medallion portraits, each depicting a seated male figure in Ottoman-style robes and turban against a gold ground, rendered in opaque watercolor.

Illustrated manuscript page with two enthroned male figures wearing tall white turbans, separated by columns of Arabic-script calligraphy; upper figure in orange robes, lower figure in blue and gray, both seated on gilded thrones within a red and gold ruled border.

Blank manuscript page with a decorative border of thin parallel lines in red, gold, and black on aged cream paper.

Bound volume with dark reddish-brown leather cover, plain surface showing age wear, with gilt-tooled border along the edges.

Title: Manuscript of the Zubdat al-Tawarikh (Cream of Histories)
Place Made: Turkey
Date Made: first half of 17th century
Medium: Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper
Dimensions: 10 7/16 x 6 3/8 x 1/4 in. (26.50 x 16.20 x 0.70 cm)
Credit Line: The Edwin Binney, 3rd, Collection of Turkish Art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Accession Number: M.85.237.38
Classification: Manuscripts
Collecting Area: Art of the Middle East: Islamic
Curatorial Notes: This manuscript belongs to the genealogical genre of Ottoman literature. Its specific format, with key figures enclosed within small interconnected medallions, is based on early fifteenth-century examples from Timurid Iran, which the Ottomans employed to illustrate their own dynasty’s alleged descent from the prophet Muhammad, in the process including Adam, biblical patriarchs, the caliphs, and even Genghis Khan and his descendants, all of whose purported relationship to the Ottomans would support their claims to legitimacy and rule. Because the last sultan shown is Ibrahim (r. 1640–48), the manuscript must date from before 1648.
Selected Bibliography: Denny, Walter B. Turkish Treasures from the Collection of Edward Binney, 3rd. Portland, OR: Portland Art Museum, 1979.
Lo Terrenal y lo Divino: Arte Islámico siglos VII al XIX Colección del Museo de Arte del Condado de Los Ángeles. Santiago: Centro Cultural La Moneda, 2015.
Pal, Pratapaditya, Thomas W. Lentz, Sheila R. Canby, Edwin Binney, 3rd, Walter B. Denny, and Stephen Markel. "Arts from Islamic Cultures: Los Angeles County Museum of Art." Arts of Asia 17, no. 6 (November/December 1987): 73-130.
Taner, Melis. Caught in a Whirlwind: A Cultural History of Ottoman Baghdad as Reflected in Its Illustrated Manuscripts. Leiden: Brill, 2020.
Binney, Edwin, 3rd. "Turkish Arts of the Book in the Binney Collection." Arts of Asia 17, no.6 (Nov/Dec 1987): 97-104.

Manuscript of the Zubdat al-Tawarikh (Cream of Histories)first half of 17th century

Not on view

Title: Manuscript of the Zubdat al-Tawarikh (Cream of Histories)
Place Made: Turkey
Date Made: first half of 17th century
Medium: Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper
Dimensions: 10 7/16 x 6 3/8 x 1/4 in. (26.50 x 16.20 x 0.70 cm)
Credit Line: The Edwin Binney, 3rd, Collection of Turkish Art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Accession Number: M.85.237.38
Classification: Manuscripts
Collecting Area: Art of the Middle East: Islamic
Curatorial Notes: This manuscript belongs to the genealogical genre of Ottoman literature. Its specific format, with key figures enclosed within small interconnected medallions, is based on early fifteenth-century examples from Timurid Iran, which the Ottomans employed to illustrate their own dynasty’s alleged descent from the prophet Muhammad, in the process including Adam, biblical patriarchs, the caliphs, and even Genghis Khan and his descendants, all of whose purported relationship to the Ottomans would support their claims to legitimacy and rule. Because the last sultan shown is Ibrahim (r. 1640–48), the manuscript must date from before 1648.
Selected Bibliography: Denny, Walter B. Turkish Treasures from the Collection of Edward Binney, 3rd. Portland, OR: Portland Art Museum, 1979.
Lo Terrenal y lo Divino: Arte Islámico siglos VII al XIX Colección del Museo de Arte del Condado de Los Ángeles. Santiago: Centro Cultural La Moneda, 2015.
Pal, Pratapaditya, Thomas W. Lentz, Sheila R. Canby, Edwin Binney, 3rd, Walter B. Denny, and Stephen Markel. "Arts from Islamic Cultures: Los Angeles County Museum of Art." Arts of Asia 17, no. 6 (November/December 1987): 73-130.
Taner, Melis. Caught in a Whirlwind: A Cultural History of Ottoman Baghdad as Reflected in Its Illustrated Manuscripts. Leiden: Brill, 2020.
Binney, Edwin, 3rd. "Turkish Arts of the Book in the Binney Collection." Arts of Asia 17, no.6 (Nov/Dec 1987): 97-104.