THE LETTERS PROBABLY WRITTEN OTTOMAN TURKEY, SECOND HALF 19TH CENTURY; THE ILLUMINATION QAJAR IRAN, SECOND HALF 19TH CENTURY

These two letters are written by 'Abdu'l-Baha (d.1921), the son of Baha'u'llah (d. 1892) and leader of the Baha'i faith from 1892 until 1921. He signed letters and documents with a double 'ayn, as found here. One letter thanks the Baha'i community in Rasht for the kindness shown to one Mirza Muhammad Husayn Tabib-i Za'ir. The other expresses Baha'u'llah's pleasure at the news relating to one Aqa Mirza Aqa and the purchase of the house of 'Arbab'. The legend on the seal impression reads ya sahibay al-sijn ('O companions in prison!', Qur'an 12:39, part) which may reveal that this letter was sent during the period of 'Abdu'l-Baha's and Baha'u'llah's imprisonment in Akka from 1868 until his death. A calligraphic panel by the Baha'i calligrapher Mishkin Qalam made in Akka in 1902 AH was sold in these rooms, 25 April 2024, lot 167.