This magnificent calligraphic lawha is a reproduction of an Ottoman composition calligraphed by Mahmud Celâleddin in the early 19th century. Its subject matter is the fours names of Prophet Muhammad:
Muhammad ﷺ (Highly Praised)
Ahmad ﷺ (The Most Commendable)
Hamid ﷺ (Praising)
Mahmood ﷺ (Praised)
The names of the Final Messenger ﷺ seem to be written in a single stroke in black ink.
Born into a Daghestani family, Mahmud Celâleddin Efendi (d.1829) is said to have taught himself calligraphy by studying the work of various masters. He developed a distinctive calligraphy style, relating more closely to the mode of Ahmad Karahisari or Yaqut al-Musta'simi. Sultan Abdulmecid had been one of Celâleddin's students and he encouraged the court calligraphers to produce works in his teachers' style. Celâleddin wrote the inscriptions inside the foundation of the Eyüp Camii and on the tomb of Mihrishah Sultan. His wife Esa Ibret, a famous female calligrapher, was also his pupil. He is buried next to his wife in the Sheikh Murad Lodge near Eyüp Sultan.
