Description:

Lot 128. AN OFFICIAL DOCUMENT
Ottoman Turkey, 19th/20th Century

This framed Ottoman official document is executed in black ink on cream paper, featuring the imperial tughra of the reigning sultan at the top — a finely drawn emblem that served as the Sultan’s personal signature and symbol of authority. The text flows beneath it in elegant divani script, the calligraphic style traditionally reserved for royal and state correspondence.

The vertical arrangement of the lines, curving gracefully down the page, reflects the highly stylized chancery hand of Ottoman bureaucratic writing. Near the top appears a circular tughra seal impressed in ink, further confirming the document’s authenticity and function as an official decree or correspondence from the Imperial Council (Divan-i Hümayun).

Such documents were used for the appointment of officials, granting of privileges, or the conveyance of imperial orders, and they exemplify the Ottoman synthesis of artistic refinement and administrative precision. The combination of flowing script, royal emblem, and meticulous layout marks this as a classic example of late Ottoman statecraft rendered as an art form.

Length x Width: 92 x 41cm

Folio: 76 x 25cm

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November 4, 2025 1:00 PM GMT
London, United Kingdom

PLAKAS

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