The stylistics of golden rulings (Decorative frames, Jadwal) in Timurid and Safavid manuscripts؛ ninth to twelfth centuries AH

The stylistics of golden rulings (decorative frames, Jadwal) in Timurid and Safavid manuscripts (ninth to twelfth centuries AH)

Rulings (Jadwal, Decorative frames, Cadre, or Border) are an old and continuous element in manuscripts. Rulings are seen in the oldest Qurans produced in Islamic civilization. Because the rulings are used on all the pages of a manuscript, as a result, they have a significant contribution to embellishing the manuscripts. Previous studies have shown that red rulings were the first rulings used in Persian manuscripts and after them, drawing rulings with gold has been popular since the middle of the 7th century. Since the 9th century, decorative rulings have become one of the important elements in the book art.
But unfortunately, we see that few studies have been assigned to the rulings. Examining the manuscripts shows that the rulings were used in different styles in the manuscripts produced in the 9th to 12th centuries AH. Therefore, the importance of the present research is due to two reasons. The first thing is that the stylistics of rulings, which is necessary for a better understanding of book art in the Timurid and Safavid periods, has not been done until today, and the second thing is that by recognizing the type of rulings, manuscript researchers can accurately date undated manuscripts. It is reminded that the stylistics of rulings about the manuscripts produced before the 9th century have been identified and introduced in previous research. Therefore, the present study complements previous research.
As a result, the first purpose of this article is to identify the different styles of rulings based on their structure from the ninth to the twelfth century AH, and the second purpose of this article is to identify the rules governing the structures of the rulings. To achieve these goals, these questions have been answered: 1- What are the stylistics of rulings in the 9th to 12th centuries AH? And 2- what were the rules governing the structure of the golden rulings? In this article, the rulings of more than 450 manuscripts with decorative rulings that are preserved in reliable libraries inside and outside of Iran were identified and analyzed using a descriptive-analytical method, and the necessary information was collected from library sources. The results of this study showed that the golden rulings in the manuscripts produced in the Timurid and Safavid periods (ninth to twelfth centuries A.H) can be an important indicator in the classification of ruling styles. Therefore, in the first stage, basic styles were formed based on the number of golden lines, which are:
one golden line, two golden lines (Dawaleh), three golden lines (Morassa), and four golden lines. In the second step, based on the number and placement of colored lines (including lapis lazuli, red, and green) next to the golden lines, the subgroup styles of each style were formed as follows: eight subgroups for one-golden rulings, eight subgroups for two-golden rulings (Dawaleh), three subgroups for three-golden rulings (Morassa) and two subgroups for four-golden rulings. Also, by examining the structure of the ruling, it was determined: 1- The main golden ruling (the last golden rule, the mother gold ruling) is always the thickest compared to other golden rulings. 2- Three contours (thin black lines: Tahrir) one contour on the front and two contours on the back are always used for the main golden rule (mother gold ruling). 3- lapis lazuli ruling ruling is the last ruling in the structure of ruling. 4- Contrasting and complementary colors are used in the structure of the rulings (gold and lapis lazuli, green and red).
Also, the investigations showed that due to the non-uniform thickness of the ruling lines, the use of two colors with the highest contrast (gold and lapis lazuli) and complementary colors (green and red) and drawing three contours instead of two contours for the main gold table (mother gold ruling) There have been methods by which the ruling artists have given dynamism and attractiveness to the static structure of the rulings. The study of the stylistics of golden rulings, in addition to revealing the rules governing them, also specified how styles were formed as follows: Before the ninth century, one golden line with two black contours and one lapis lazuli line became popular ruling, and in the ninth century, drawing three black contours replaced the drawing of two black contours for the golden line. The ruling with two gold lines and one lapis lazuli line (Dawaleh) branched off from the previous ruling, and after that, all rulings with three, four, and five golden lines were formed based on the structure of the Dawaleh ruling.
Key words: ruling, Jadwal, manuscript, gold, lapis lazuli, Timurid, Safavid