PERSIAN MANUSCRIPT - DIVAN HAFIZ SHIRAZI, late 18th century, with 6 paintings.

HAFIZ (d. 1390). DIVAN HAFIZ SHIRAZI, late 18th century, Persian manuscript on cream paper, consisting of 243 leaves together with 6 illuminated leaves (=237 leaves & 6 paintings in colours heightened with gold on separate leaves), plus two fly-leaves.
1 title page with decorations in blue, red and gold, each folio with ca 14 lines of fine black text arranged in two columns, a border of gold and red together with floral decorations in blue in the middle.
Old note on first free endpapers from former owner, dated 1340 (=1922).
Size c. 140x750 mm. 195x125 mm. (binding).
In original contemporary decorated dark red leather binding, with flap, worn and renovated with old spine and boards mounted. New inner green doblures and endpapers.

Provenance: From the library of Ove Hassler (1904-87), Dean in Linköping, Sweden, and his son, Eivind Hassler (1939-2009).

1 painting with repaired tear together with repaired margin, 1 additional painting with small repair to margin, 1 with minor hole with minor loss to lower border.
Title leaf with inner margin restored, small repair to margin; text partly with smudges and some spotting, some marginal dampstaining; a few minor marginal tears, some marginal repairs, 1 page with repair. Restorations to ca 10 leaves mostly at the end and beginning, especially to inner margins, some small repairs to corners, 1 leaf restored to inner margin partly affecting text and border.
Numbers in pencil to the corners.
Binding worn and renovated with old spine mounted. New inner doblures and endpapers. Tightly bound.