The Stylistics of Illumination in Manuscripts Written During the Injuid Period

The stylistics of manuscript decorations helps identify artistic styles in the history of book art, understand other works of the period, and detect forgeries. Illumination is one of the key decorative arts in the art of the book. Manuscript illumination, as a type of book ornamentation, provides a wealth of information about the history of Iranian book art, Persian aesthetics, and culture. This research, addressing the need to recognize different artistic styles, introduces the important stylistic indicators in manuscript illuminations, distinguishing them from works of other periods, and offers a clearer understanding of Persian manuscript decoration and its evolution. It also emphasizes the importance of regional styles in Persian book art. These findings encourage further studies of lesser-known manuscripts to expand our knowledge of different eras. This study provides useful insights into the stylistics of Injuid illuminations and demonstrates their artistic significance. This research investigates the stylistics of manuscript illuminations produced in Shiraz during the Injuid dynasty, especially in the first half of the 8th century AH. The study aims to understand how these decorative elements help identify artistic styles, discover other works from the same period, detect forgeries, and also recognize decorations added later. The research was conducted using a descriptive and analytical method, combining visual analysis and stylistics to identify key features of Injuid illuminations. The main research question is: What are the principal formal, structural, and chromatic characteristics of Injuid illuminations? To answer this, ten manuscripts were selected. The attribution of these ten manuscripts to the Injuid period has been examined in two ways. Some of these manuscripts have been introduced as Injuid works in previous studies, while others have clearly documented dates, places of production, or the names of their scribes. Illuminated pages of these manuscripts were examined in five stages, focusing on main frames, sub-frames, motifs, and color schemes. The most frequently used features were categorized and analyzed as the main stylistic elements. The study identifies three primary types of decoration: oblong cartouches with medallions at the beginning of manuscripts, fully illuminated pages, and double cartouches. Sizes of oblong cartouches with medallions range from 145–220 mm in length and 30–50 mm in width, with medallion diameters between 140–180 mm. Fully illuminated pages measure 157–240 mm in length and 63–200 mm in width. Margins often include small medallions, half-medallions, or comparable motifs. Key decorative motifs include lotus patterns with dense compositions, knotwork and knotted motifs used independently, and marginal designs featuring shapes such as fish scales and petals. Gold is the dominant color in these works, with additional hues including verdigris, cinnabar, and lapis lazuli. Among these stylistic features, the key findings highlight the use of oblong cartouches and medallions at manuscript openings, marginal designs with small or half medallions, and lotus motifs. Also notable are the independent knotted patterns and shapes resembling fish scales and petals around the frames. Gold, as the principal color, enhances the luxury and refinement of these works.