243

THE TAESCHNER COLLECTION (Or. 12.414, cont.)

mentioned (cf. GAL I, p. 386, S I, p. 668). ‘Pertev’ was most probably the mufti Pertev ‘AIT Efendi of istife (Thebes) (d. 1076/1665, cf. ‘OM, pp. 112-3). The colophon, quoted below, ascribes the work to a certain Fazil ‘All Efendi (not identified, unless the aforementioned Pertev ‘AIT Efendi is meant). The work was offered to Grand Vizier [SemTn] Mehmed Pa§a, the conqueror of Azak (Azov, in 1642/1051, cf. Dani§mend, Kronoloji III, p. 389, grand vizier between 1053/1644 and 1055/1645), and the translator expressed his hope that it would also please his master, Sultan ibrahTm (2b). According to Mehmed Tahir, two manuscript copies of this translation are preserved in Istanbul libraries. He also explains that the work is divided into three parts (kism) whose titles he quotes (‘OM II, p. 112). Our copy, however, consists of a mükaddime and two chapters (bab), as is explicitely stated in the introduction (2a:19/2b:l). The mükaddime commences in f. 3a:9, the first chapter (‘vezaret teftni beydmndadur’) on f. 12b, the second (‘vezdret tenfizinde müte'allik olan ümür beydmndadur’) on f. 46b. The chapter titles are not found anong those given in ‘OM. The chapters are subdivided into a great many sections and the text is punctuated with verses in Arabic. No other copies of this work seem to be documented. Bound in gold-embossed greenish-black leather with flap; glazed white paper; (l)+74+(l) folios; 200x135 mm and 156x77 mm; 19 lines; without catchwords; ta‘Itk; headings, rubrics, dots, lines and borders in red; gold borders within black lines on ff. lb-2a; a headpiece with floral patterns in gold is found on f. lb; completed by Mehmed Receb in the early days of RebCu s-sani 1248 (28 August - 6 September 1832); a partly erased undotted inscription with the name Mehmed Tevfik and well as another one by Franz Taeschner (‘Ms.Nr. 97’) are found on f. la; the MS also contains a piece of paper with a note in Taeschner’s hand with the title, name of the author, copy of the colophon and the date of copying with the remark that the MS had been purchased from NasrQllah at Constantinople in the summer of 1924.

Begins (lb-2a): j-aU» L#l ••• a* jJI «1/1 «....« ... oJltUs jJjJul -iL-c. Cj 4-C. J aj jjJI (_J J aS jJj Lj | ...

Ends (74a): l^uLJI I j I il A~ r LuJt jdt I (jl j I ui «4Jb L) Lai jAJUo jl I tjj.aJLaJI ljj L> ij^«l 4JLc.Us ^^Ic. liiLc.1 5 ... Ljl

Colophon (ibidem):