- Provenance
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To 1930
Hagop Kevorkian (1872-1962), New York to 1930 [1]From 1930
Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from Hagop Kevorkian, New York in 1930 [2]Notes:
[1] Object file, undated folder sheet note. See also Freer Gallery of Art Purchase List file, Collections Management Office.
[2] See note 1.
- Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)
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Hagop Kevorkian 1872-1962
- Description
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Detached folio from a dispersed copy of the Kitab fi ma'arifat al-hiyal al-handisaya (The book of knowledge of ingenious mechanical devices), "Automata," by al-Jazari; text: Arabic in black and red naskh script; recto: text, Water-powered clocks, one column, 12 lines; verso: illustration and text, The face of a water clock with zodiac signs, one column, 6 lines; one of a group of 8 folios.
- Label
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The so-called <i><Automat/i>a of al-Jazari, which describes the construction of fifty mechanical devices, was frequently illustrated in Syria and Egypt during the fourteenth century. This painting comes from a section of the Automata text devoted to water powered clocks. The green disk is part of a clock constructed in the form of a palace facade. As described in the text and accurately depicted here, the disk consists of a revolving outer rim adorned with the twelve signs of the zodiac and two inner zones with gold roundels for the sun and moon.
- Published References
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- The Book of Ingenious Devices [Kitab al-hiyal]. Dordrecht, Holland and Boston. .
- Anna Contadini. The Kitab Manafi 'al Hayawan in the Escorial Library. no. 3. p. 43.
- Dr. Esin Atil. Art of the Arab World. Exh. cat. Washington, 1975. cat. 44, pp. 102-103.
- Collection Area(s)
- Arts of the Islamic World
- Web Resources
- Google Cultural Institute
- SI Usage Statement
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Usage Conditions Apply
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CC0 - Creative Commons (CC0 1.0)
This image is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.
Usage Conditions Apply
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.
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International Image Interoperability Framework
FS-7321_49